Support of the Sword Hero
by KiroZen
Summary: I thought I'd seen everything in my years on the road, but never did I imagine I would have the responsibility thrust upon me to save a world that wasn't my own. Oh well, at least I haven't been separated from my brother again. [Being rewritten]
1. Chapter 1

**+The Audience+**

* * *

I took stock of my surroundings as I rolled to a crouching position.

Firstly, Yoyo behind me. That was good. I didn't lose him like I did back then.

Three other people to my sides, dressed casually. Combat experience was likely minimal.

Sword in hand. Not familiar, but something in the back of my head told me it was mine.

Robed and hooded men in front of me. Potential enemies. Current manner: non-threatening.

Architecture was old-fashioned. Looked sort of like MicFortress, which implied these robed men could use magic. Also potential explanation for being here.

"Oh brave heroes, please-"

Having analyzed enough, I stood and levelled my weapon at the men in front of me.

"Who are you and where did you take me?!" My eyes glared harshly into theirs. Combined with the sword at their throats, the crowd took a step back in fear.

"One, stop!"

I turned around to look at my brother, taking in his condition.

No visible injuries. Clutching at stomach, most likely nausea. Condition is not critical.

"We're not here to make enemies yet." He stood shakily. Whatever got us here didn't seem to agree with him.

I raised an eyebrow. "Yet?"

"Depends on what they do in the immediate future, doesn't it?"

I smiled bitterly. On the one hand, it was good that he was learning to become cautious in strange situations. It could very well save his life.

On the other, I couldn't help but feel guilty. As though the remainder of my paranoia from my wandering days was what was molding my brother's potential early stages of cynicism.

The leading robed man, who had his hood down as well as a circlet around his head, spoke up nervously. "O-Oh brave heroes, please save our world!"

I turned back to them, any sign of warmth leaving my body language. "_Explain_," I bit through grit teeth.

The sense of drama he was obviously trying to project was stunted by his nervosity in the face of my aggression. "There's-There's a long and complicated story behind this, but we've summoned you Four Cardinal Heroes here using an ancient ritual." He paused, no doubt to let it sink in for us. "Our world teeters on the brink of destruction. We beg you, O brave heroes, please grant us aid!"

"Well," One of the people started, "I guess I could hear you out-"

He was immediately interrupted by one of the others. "Not happening."

I turned to the guy with a raised eyebrow. He was wearing green formal-ish wear. Probably a uniform for private academies. Looked the age for the part too.

I mentally tagged him as "Boy."

"What he said. We can go back to our world, right? We'll talk about your problems after that." The man on the other side of me stepped forward a little.

I glanced at him. His attire was far more casual than even the third man who was furthest from me. He was attempting to project a "relaxed professional" stance but the way he held his spear screamed "newbie" at me.

I tagged him as "Fancy Man" and elected to speak, ensuring that my tone was, while no longer hostile, still frosty. "As much as I'd like to hear you out, I'm also peeved at the way you brought us here without even asking for consent. If lack of remorse is a characteristic trait in this place you'll find it much, _much _harder to earn my cooperation."

"Brother…" I could hear Yoyo facepalm behind me.

"Plus," Boy piped up, "If you throw us out after peace is restored, we'd have worked for nothing.

"How willing are you to accommodate us?" Fancy Man drawled, resting his spear on his shoulder. "Depending on your answer, we might end up becoming your enemies."

Jeez, what even was this guy? Updating his tag from "Fancy Man" to "Dick".

"Um-First, we'd like you to have an audience with the king of our country, Melromarc."

Hm...Never heard of such a place in Cier. Guess that cements that we're in a different world entirely.

"You can negotiate your rewards after that, so please…" he trailed off nervously.

I considered the offer. It wasn't much of a choice really. If Yoyo and I wanted to make it back home, support from the ruling body of the region would make things far easier.

Then again, like Dick had said, it all depended on how willing the region was to accommodate us.

I turned to my brother and raised an eyebrow. He shrugged and whispered, "All yours, just don't kill anyone undeserving."

I turned back to the group of cultists–or whatever they were–and spoke curtly. "Fine then. Lead us to him."

"I suppose we could consider the offer." Boy sighed in attempt to be dramatic.

"Not like our demands are going to change either way." Dick grinned confidently.

I turned to the last guy who was staring at us in bemusement. "You coming?"

"Huh? Ah-uh, yeah, I am."

He was dressed casually in a green and white sweatshirt and, while at ease, seemed far more cautious about this whole scenario than the other two who came with us.

Probably the most sensible person out of the other three.

I tagged him as "Uninflated Head" as I turned with my brother and stalked after the other two who'd already gone.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"So these four men are the Four Cardinal Heroes of ancient legend?"

We were standing in the middle of an elaborate throne room, with guards at the walls on both sides of us. In front of us were a pair of thrones, and in the one to my left sat the decorated man who was speaking to us.

His hair was all gray, a crown adorned his forehead, and lines were etched across his face, a symbol of his age.

I wondered to myself if his age was a sign of his wisdom, or a sign of his wisdom fading.

"I am the king of Melromarc, Aultcray Melromarc the 32nd." That's a long line of Aultcrays. "Name yourselves, heroes."

I took the initiative. "Edwin Ferris. 35. Apprentice of the Dojo. You can call me 'One'."

Dick went next. "Motoyasu Kitamura, 21 years old and a college student."

Tag updated to "Motoyasu".

Boy went after him. "I guess I'm next. Itsuki Kawasumi. 17 years old, and a high schooler."

Tag updated to "Itsuki".

My brother took a breath to speak, but was interrupted by the king.

"So Edwin, Motoyasu and Itsuki, is it?"

My eyes narrowed coldly. "I count _five_ people in front of you. Dismissiveness does you no credit, _Your Rudeness_."

Yoyo turned an incredulous gaze to me and whispered harshly, "_Brother! Don't antagonize the ruling party!_"

"You mustn't be so disrespectful." Itsuki spoke to me in reproach.

"But of course. My apologies, then, _your royal majesty._" I drawled, making sure to drown my words in as much sarcasm as I could without breaking the illusion of formality.

I'll admit, I was probably a _little_ too confrontational about it, but him glossing over Yoyo's presence instantly put him on my shit list.

The man on the throne scowled at me, but simply replied through equally gritted teeth. "_King _is fine."

Shaking his head in shame, Yoyo turned to the asshole who probably didn't deserve my brother's respect. "Arthur Ferris. 24. Apprentice of the Dojo and I go by 'Yoyo'."

"And lastly, me. I'm Naofumi Iwatani. I'm 20, and a college student."

Tag updated to "Naofumi".

He didn't so much as give either my brother or Naofumi a second glance. "I suppose I owe you all an explanation."

My teeth could probably crack cierium fiber, but Yoyo squeezing my arm kept me from doing something rash. Brutally murdering a person of royalty, no matter how big a pain in the ass they were, came with repercussions, after all.

Naofumi was a bit more vocal about his treatment. "Are you ignoring me?" he muttered quietly.

"My country, Melromarc, and the entire world is headed toward destruction…"

The gist of the explanation was this: There was an apocalyptic prophecy in this world, detailing the arrival of events called "Waves," each of which brought about calamities that must be thwarted or the world would end. Every country in the world had this thing called an "Ancient Dragon Hourglass" which counted down the time remaining until the next wave's coming. The first Wave came about before our summoning, but they'd managed to repel it with local military force. The ones taking place after though, are even more potent.

So long as Waves will happen, the hourglass would keep trickling. As it stands right now, there was about a month remaining until the next wave.

The question I had, but knew better than to voice, was where were the other countries in all this? If the whole world's in peril, then what about the rest of it outside Melromarc?

I knew better than to voice it because I doubt they omitted the other countries from their narrative so that we can ask of them.

Propaganda was the same everywhere, apparently.

"We underestimated the might of the Waves." By this point the sun was starting to set. "We realized once we've experienced one that only the Four Cardinal Heroes could counter the horrors. And thus, we have followed the ancient legend and summoned you. We have no time to lose!"

"Brother…" Yoyo tugged at my arm.

I turned to him and he whispered to me. "This is the plotline of the game I wanted to show you."

I nodded in understanding and turned back to the king. "Well, I can appreciate the situation a little better now. That said, I hope you weren't expecting us all to be charitable and ask for nothing in return."

"Of course not." The man standing next to the king's throne looked like a shriveled prune with skin the colour of parchment. Combined with the slicked-back hair, it gave off an unsettling vibe.

I could take him on, no question about that, but he didn't feel pleasant to be around.

I tagged him as "Sleaze Bag".

"Once you repel all the waves," he continued, "we shall obviously reward you handsomely."

"Will you now?" smirked Motoyasu, "So long as we have your word I suppose."

"Don't stab us in the back and we shall have no issues." I drawled.

"Yeah, we can't have that." Yoyo muttered beside me.

"Just don't try to have us serve you at your beck and call." Itsuki grinned in turn.

"R-Right…" Naofumi muttered his agreement and promptly put his hand to his forehead in what was likely exasperation. He was probably denouncing our arrogance and overconfidence.

Then again, he probably didn't know I had the skill to back my claims up.

"I trust we have an agreement." The king spoke from his throne. "Then, heroes, please check your statuses."

Naofumi proceeded to ask an excellent question that I wanted to ask as well. "What's a 'status'?"

I had no clue, but apparently my brother did. "Look in the bottom right corner of your field of vision. There should be an icon there."

I checked, and sure enough, there it was.

"Now try focusing on it."

A sizeable window popped up in front of me at that, detailing a number of odd terms I decided I'd go over later. My focus lay on the number set in the largest font size, which said "Level 1".

...How was I supposed to fight like this?

And judging by the comments I heard from the others, they were in agreement over that.

"What _is _all this anyway?" Naofumi turned to the two men we were facing.

"Status magic," Sleaze Bag answered, "it's an ability exclusive to the heroes."

"What are we to do?" I asked. Now that all the context and exposition was out of the way, it was time for the briefing.

"You are all to go on an adventure so that you can develop and upgrade the legendary weapons that you have equipped to you."

Yoyo snorted quietly. "Yes," he whispered in a stereotypical fancy accent, "develop and upgrade the legendary weapon, the bringer of death, the _ultimate _killing tool! _The! Yoyo!_"

I held back from snorting, but smirked at that regardless.

The suggested course of action made sense. Yoyo has introduced me to enough games for me to know that Level 1 was the lowest of the low. Rock bottom, as it was.

I don't think this sword could've sliced through butter even if I swung with all of my admittedly limited might.

"So these aren't maxed immediately?" Naofumi looked at the shield on his arm. "Mine's not even a weapon though…"

"Couldn't we just use other weapons until these are suitable?" Motoyasu asked as he cycled through multiple "stances" with his spear.

He was so amateurish it was causing me physical pain to watch it.

"We'll figure that out as we go," I muttered as I turned away from the sad excuse of a spearman that stood next to me, "as of right now, training ourselves takes priority."

"If we formed a party together," Naofumi started, "we could-"

"One moment, heroes." We turned to look at Sleaze Bag, who'd interrupted Naofumi. "You will all be recruiting and adventuring separately."

Why? That's stupid as heck. If we're all going to fight the waves, we should at least learn to cooperate so that we could work efficiently as a team.

I said as much to Sleaze Bag, to which he responded, "It is said that the legendary weapons repel each other by nature. If you work together, it apparently hinders their development."

That was single-handedly the most stupid thing I've heard today, but it was unfortunately confirmed as fact by a window popping up.

**{HELP}**

_When two or more wielders of the Legendary Weapons operate together, it causes an adverse reaction in the weapons. Working separately is highly advised._

Well, crap.

Guess we're sticking it out on our own.

"The sun is about to set." No shit, king. "Rest up tonight and set forth tomorrow. In the meantime, we'll gather the best of the best to form your parties."

I smirked inwardly. '_Unless you somehow summoned Alfa as well, there's _no way _you have the "best of the best". Besides, Yoyo's the only person I really need in my party._'

A lady dressed in a gown stepped forward. "We've prepared rooms for all of you. Please follow me."

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

Night had fallen, we'd eaten our fill, and we were now in one of the rooms provided for us.

"Guess being a hero of legend has perks associated with it." Motoyasu leaned back into the wall as he sat on the drawers. "The girl who showed us here was a looker too."

'_Well, deciphering this guy's character isn't difficult at all._' I smirked internally as I went through my menu.

This whole status thing was giving me headaches, and this menu layout was far from intuitive. By which I mean I'd accidentally closed it several times before I got the hang of it.

My "ATT" stat, which I assumed meant "attack", was fairly high, as was my "MAG" stat, presumably magic. In contrast, both my "P. DEF" and "M. DEF" stats were below average, but my "DEX" stat was easily my best stat.

Based on the {HELP} menu, this meant that I could hit fast and hard, but couldn't really tank hits well in turn.

Just the usual, then.

There was also a number of "affinities" in the menu, each affinity at level 0, and each one being of a different element. I presumed that those went up the more I fought and levelled.

The "Small Sword" in my hands was not terribly impressive to me, but it's a weapon, and it's all I had at the moment, so it'd have to do.

"Hey," Naofumi spoke up, prompting me to look up from my menu analysis, "isn't this kinda like a game?"

"You mean it _is_ one." Motoyasu shifted his seating position on the dresser. "It's exactly like _Emerald Online._"

Naofumi's response is a deadpan, "What is that?"

Motoyasu balked. "Wha-are you serious? It's super famous!"

"Never heard of it." I muttered.

Though, to be fair, with all my years on the road, there was very little I'd actually heard about that was "mainstream," as Yoyo called it.

"What are you going on about?" Itsuki interjects, "It's not a world out of some online game, it's from a console game called _Dimension Web._"

"Not what I'm familiar with." Yoyo shook his head. "It's a VRMMO, one of the first of its kind too. Plotline and mechanics are all pretty much the same as _Brave Star Online_."

Motoyasu finally stopped "relaxing" on the drawer–that pose would not be the first thing coming to mind at the thought "relaxation"–and stood up. "Let's review the information we have." He turned to me. "Edwin, right? Can we take VRMMO literally?"

"Call me One." I answered, "I'm not intimately familiar with the concept, that's more my brother's cup of tea, but I'm certain that his information is accurate."

He turned to the others. "You guys get what that means, right?"

"I think a sci-fi game I'm familiar with explored the concept." Itsuki answered.

"I've read about them in LN's." Naofumi was leaning back into the couch.

"I'm the guy who plays them, so I'd hope so." Yoyo grinned.

"Just to be sure, let's check our general knowledge." Motoyasu put his hands to his chin. "Who's the person on the thousand-yen bill?"

Wait, what?

He gestured with his spear. "One, two–"

"–Noguchi Hideyo."

"–Yawara Gotaro."

"–Yuda Masato."

"–What the fuck is 'yen'?"

Me and Yoyo both said the last one in unison.

Everyone looked at each other in confusion at the answers.

And then a barrage of questions started.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"Looks like the three of us–" Itsuki gestured to himself and the other two heroes, "–are all from different iterations of Japan while you guys–" he gestured to us, "–are from a different world entirely."

"I'll say," Yoyo nodded in agreement. "I've never heard of a 'Japan' or 'yen' in Cier, and I can't fathom someone not having heard of master Hyun or at least the Dojo."

"To think they'd manage to bring in heroes from differing universes," Naofumi mused, "the magic they employ is truly potent. And I really can't believe that three of you played games that are all but copies of this world. Why am I the only one unfamiliar-" I coughed pointedly. "-sorry, one of the two unfamiliar with this?"

Yoyo and the other heroes gave him a calculating look.

"Wh-What's going on?"

"Well...initially, I just thought it was because you're the Shield Hero," Itsuki admitted, "but if not even the Sword Hero's terribly knowledgeable about this…"

Oei, are you implying something, kid?

Motoyasu turned to the high-schooler. "You too, huh?"

"What are you guys talking about? Is there something wrong with the shield?"

Motoyasu turned back to Naofumi with an eyebrow raised. "All righty, big bro Motoyasu's gonna get you up to speed on the basics. As far as I know, the Shielder class, which specializes in shield usage…" he paused long enough to let Naofumi ask, "Yeah?" before continuing with, "...is one for losers. No high-level player plays it."

There was a pause.

"_No!_" Naofumi's yell could've been heard across the city. Hopefully the walls were soundproofed.

He turned to Yoyo and Itsuki. "What about your worlds?"

Yoyo looked apologetic. "Sorry."

Itsuki didn't. "Likewise."

"Theoretically," I mused, "shields shouldn't be discounted as a weapon simply because of its designed purpose. It may be made to defend, but it's still a weight hanging off the arm. Clobbering someone with such a weight should be able to at least put someone out of commission."

"That's if real life applied, One." Yoyo butted in. "I think it's safe to say it doesn't, what with menus and stats and all that."

I conceded that point.

"So, what's the terrain here like?" Motoyasu questioned as Naofumi fell sideways onto the couch.

"Similar to what we should be familiar with so long as your worlds have forests." Yoyo responded.

I tuned out of the conversation and began fiddling with my menu again.

"So far I'm equipped with this [Small Sword] and these [Otherworld Clothes], huh?" I muttered to myself. "No real bonuses from the clothing. I suppose that's to be expected." I took a glance at the full {HELP} menu...and immediately dismissed it. It would be too long a read for right now, seeing as Yoyo was planning on going to bed soon to get some rest for tomorrow.

"Alright! I'm going to give it my all!"

My eyes snapped to the balcony as I stood, dismissing the menu. Since when did Naofumi get over there?

Shit, am I getting too lax? I missed something as obvious as a person walking around!

"Right…" Motoyasu muttered, then continued. "We have to head out on adventures tomorrow. Let's head back to our rooms and get a good night's sleep."

I tapped Yoyo on the shoulder and jerked my head as he looked up. He nodded, stood, and followed.

We're going to have a long day tomorrow.

* * *

**A/N:**

**I'm back.**

**After possibly the longest time of radio silence.**

**Then again it's not as though I'm popular so I don't have to fear a riot.**

**Yet.**

**So after the ill-thought-out idea that was Team Gemini, it took me a while before I decided to write some more Fanfiction. During that time I got into stick-figure fighting animations, and then Rising of the Shield Hero.**

**Even before this, when I found the Duelist Demo for One, I'd been putting him in crossover-like events in my mind to see how he'd do in such scenarios.**

**Thus, this was given form. A story from the perspective of One as the Sword Hero, with Yoyo along for the ride. I'm not putting this in a crossover section because I'm not certain where the section for RHG or similar catefories are.**

**For the purposes of this story, I'd given One and Yoyo full names, with "One" and "Yoyo" being monikers more than anything. Kind of hard to introduce oneself without a proper accepted name. And I highly doubt they'd accept One and Yoyo as given names.**

**Don't expect frequent updates. I type when I feel like it, and writer's block exists.**

**I own not Rising of the Shield Hero, One, Yoyo, or Cier. All rights are reserved to their respective creators.**

**I think that's all I have to say here.**

**See you all around.**

**EDIT: Found an error and removed it. Nothing major.**


	2. Chapter 2

**+The First Steps+**

* * *

The sun was still in the process of rising as the door to the throne room was opened. The five of us strode in, with Yoyo marching next to me.

Across from us, standing in front of the pair of thrones, were the "best of the best" that the king had brought to become our companions.

Not going to happen with me, but whatever. I suppose it's the thought that counted.

"We have gathered brave warriors who will fight the Waves with you Legendary Heroes."

Brave they may be, but I don't really see the "best of the best" here.

"Pardon my interruption, lord king." I raised a palm to catch the attention of everyone else. "I must refuse your generosity, for the only partner I require stands next to me."

Hushed gasps followed my declaration and the other three heroes gave me stupefied glares.

"Preposterous!"

I turned my gaze to the one who'd shouted it.

"You are all skeptical, I do not blame you for it." I ran a hand through my hair. "But the truth is, Yoyo here has the second most combat experience out of everyone in this room."

"Second most?" Yoyo raised an eyebrow at me.

"Well, you still have me to compete with, don't you?" I smirked back.

"You ass," He chuckled as he gave me a playful punch on the shoulder. He turned back to the king and adventurers. "Right then, how about this, Your Lordship, grant me the opportunity to prove myself against the best of this group so that I may dispel all doubt of my capabilities. Should I win, then you shall accept my brother's request of having none but I in his party."

The king considered for a moment. "Very well, but should you lose, then I expect your brother to accept the assistance of these adventurers without further protest."

"Understood. Have at'em, Yoyo."

He stepped forward. As did a sword-wielding knight in plate, a robed spearwoman, and an axeman.

He pulled his yoyo out, to the disbelieving murmurs of the other heroes, and with his free hand, gestured for his opponents to come at him.

They didn't hesitate.

"Hey," Naofumi spoke up, "Aren't you throwing your brother to the wolves here?"

"Just watch." I didn't so much as turn to meet his eyes. "He'll wipe the carpet with them at speed."

It was more than obvious that the three of them, despite being the supposedly highest levels here, had never cooperated before in their lives. The three of them rushed forward recklessly, each likely with their own plan for taking my brother down.

Plans that they'll never get to enact.

Yoyo swung his weapon outward, catching the knight on the chestplate. Then he yanked it backwards, which jerked the knight towards him. With the momentum carrying the man, Yoyo allowed his weapon to stop adhering to the metal, then brought it around and down onto the knight's helmet, producing a bell-like sound.

The man fell onto his rear, clutching his head in pain.

"Dead," my brother declared.

He was fortunate my brother didn't activate the impact amplifier.

Yanking the yoyo back into his hands, Yoyo then turned his attention to the spearwoman, who'd gotten closer in the time it took for him to take down the knight. She made an attempt at a lunge, but Yoyo sidestepped, caught the spear with his free hand, then smacked her in the face with a yoyo throw. She fell back-first to the ground, to which Yoyo turned the spear around and positioned it over her chest point first, miming a stab.

"Dead," he repeated, tossing the spear aside.

Finally, the axeman, who'd closed much of the distance between them in the time it took for the other two to go down, was readying a devastating overhead strike. Yoyo unflinchingly threw his yoyo, catching the man in the leg, adhering to it. Then, he jerked it back, reeling the man in like a fish. A quick mimed jab to the throat "finished" the job.

"And that's three for three." He then turned to the king. "Have I proven myself, your grace? Or shall I continue this one-sided beatdown?"

"No, that is quite enough," declared the king, "Truly, the summons have been answered by worthy individuals. As agreed, I shall not force any of the adventurers present upon you. It is, however, imperative that you at least find a third person to accompany your group."

"Why?" I stepped forwards a little. "My brother has proven himself more than capable of handling threats I myself can't see to myself. What is of such importance that neither I nor Yoyo could handle?""

"Simply put, knowledge." The king met my glare without heat. "The two of you may know how to fight, but you must also be knowledgeable about the lands, local policies, current events, and other such topics that are common knowledge to the general masses. You are representative of the good of the world, and cluelessness will not do your reputation any favours. Fear not, I shall supply you with extra funds to meet that end."

I could just as well talk to the locals rather than recruit someone to be a politics guide, but I wasn't going to deny extra funding, so I backed down.

"Would anyone else like to challenge these adventurers?"

"Uh, no."Naofumi laughed nervously. "Kinda hard to fight with nothing but a shield."

The spear and bow heroes seemed to consider it before shaking their heads. "Nah. I'd rather accept help than try to make a party from scratch. It'd be a pain in the ass. Plus, if they can't keep up, there's nothing stopping us from switching members out." Motoyasu shrugged.

Itsuki nodded his agreement.

How utterly callous, treating people as bargaining chips. Not, of course, that I'm one to talk.

"Now then, adventurers, select the hero you will follow!"

I watched as all the adventurers formed lines behind either Itsuki or Motoyasu.

"I'm sensing some sort of bias here." I frowned to my brother, who'd returned to my side.

"Your intuition knows no bounds." His tone was a 10/10 deadpan.

Naofumi quietly counted all the adventurers gathered behind the two, then turned back to the man on the throne. "What the heck, king?!"

"I have to admit, I wasn't expecting this." And yet you don't seem terribly surprised by it either, hm?

"No volunteers? He must have no charisma at all…" Sleaze Bag muttered.

I don't have an ounce of that either but none of you are trying to denounce me for it.

Another man next to the king leaned and whispered into the man's ear.

"So, there have been rumours." The king declared.

I raised an eyebrow at that.

"Did something happen?" Motoyasu inquired.

"Well," the king responded, "rumours that the Shield Hero is ignorant of this world have spread around town."

"The fuck?" Yoyo's eyes narrowed as he hissed. "We just got here yesterday and there's already rumours?"

"I know," I whispered back, "there's no way such rumours could already be-"

It hit me then, like a bolt of lightning.

It didn't seem like it spread naturally at all–it _couldn't _have spread naturally at this pace–because it didn't.

Someone got the message out to the town itself about our conversation, or at the very least, the adventurers that we would be recruiting, that Naofumi wasn't well-versed in the world's mechanics, which was something he only admitted last night, while we were gathered in the bedroom.

In short, someone, perhaps multiple someones, were spying on us.

"Damn it all," I snarled quietly, "I really _have _gotten too lax."

"Legend has it that the heroes come with a firm understanding of our lands, and they seem to think the Shield Hero doesn't meet that criteria," the king continued dispassionately.

"Maybe someone was eavesdropping on our conversation last night." Motoyasu unsubtly leaned towards Naofumi and stage whispered.

"Seriously?" Naofumi was quieter than Motoyasu, but not by much.

"There's no 'maybe' about it." Yoyo frowned.

Naofumi grit his teeth for a few moments, then turned to Motoyasu. "Hey, don't you think this is kind of unfair?!"  
"I'm actually surprised my party is all girls, too" Motoyasu replied, not at all apologetic.

I wasn't that surprised that he had girls in his party, now that the information of us having been spied on came to light. They knew, or could at least infer, that his character didn't exactly go far beyond one thing and one thing only.

"It _would _be best to split them four to each of us, but if it was forced, it could very well destroy morale." Itsuki at least seemed a little apologetic.

Naofumi turned to me pleadingly.

"Sorry," I sighed, "but seeing as I forwent party members to keep Yoyo by my side, it'd be kind of hypocritical of me to just let him party with you now, wouldn't it?"

"So, what." Naofumi's voice rose. "Are you all telling me to go solo?!"

"If the king would be so generous as to grant you some extra funds, perhaps you could hire someone to accompany you." Yoyo's pose was pensive as he addressed Naofumi. "Otherwise, I've no ideas. It's fairly clear that none of them want to-"

"Sir Hero!"

Yoyo stopped, seemingly choking on air as he–and I–turned to where the voice came from.

"Would you allow me to join the Shield Hero?"

The one who spoke was a lady with red–and I mean straight up _crimson_–hair tied back, in leather armour that was worn over her own clothing. Her green eyes stared innocently into Naofumi's own.

She was fairly pretty, certainly, and the sword at her waist likely wasn't merely for show, so she was also combat worthy. It was a suitable party member to cover Naofumi's weaknesses…

Which was what made it suspicious to me.

Let's see, Naofumi gets no party members, even after I opted out of taking even one with me. Rumours have been spread of him being inept despite us barely even having been here a day. And then, out of nowhere, just as he's despairing, a suitable party member volunteers to join him just like that?

She may have looked innocent, but I tagged her as "Suspicious".

"What say we show him the ropes a little, Yoyo? You know the mechanics of this world, and all, right?"

He nodded at my whisper even as he raised an eyebrow. "What brought this on, One? You aren't normally so sociable."

He had a point there. Most of the people I'd met in my wandering years was someone I'd attack or someone attacking me.

Not exactly a good recipe for making friends.

Pushing those thoughts aside, I answered. "If he's truly as inexperienced as he appeared last night, he's going to need _some _guidance. The basics at the very least. He's one of the legendary heroes even if he isn't really being treated like one, and I highly doubt either Itsuki or Motoyasu would care enough to show him the ropes."

Yoyo nodded. "What about combat? You can't accompany him with the whole 'working separately' thing."

"That's something he'll have to figure out on his own, regrettably. I can give him tips at most, but I'm not familiar with shield-based combat."

"Is there anyone else who wouldn't mind joining Sir Naofumi?" The king asked as Yoyo and I conversed.

The silence was a resounding "no".

"I suppose other measures must be taken." He sighed from his throne. "Sir Naofumi, you will be responsible for the formation of your own party."

The poor guy finally came out of his daze as Suspicious smiled at him gently, and replied, "All–um, okay."

The king nodded and continued, "Every month, we will provide the heroes with the funds they require. "This time, Sir Naofumi and Sir Edwin's payments will be higher than the others."

Four people stepped forward as the king spoke. "Here are your initial war chests, please accept them. Sirs Naofumi and Edwin will get 800 silvers, while the rest shall receive 600. Use them to procure the necessary items to embark on your journey."

In unison, the other heroes and I cried, "Yes, sir!"

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

We were at the gates in short order.

"See you around, Naofumi! You take good care of her, you hear?" Motoyasu shouted back down to us.

"It's unfortunate that we can't help you, but good luck with recruitment!" Itsuki smiled at him."

"Right, got it." Naofumi replied as the two left to catch up to their companions, who were already heading out the gate. He then turned to me. "What about you guys? Shouldn't you get a head start?"

"Nah, it's fine." Yoyo put an arm around his shoulder. "As suggested by my brother here, we–or rather, _I'm_–going to show you and One the ropes."

I'd be insulted at the implication, but I already know that I'm not great with video games in general.

"Wha-? Wait a minute." Naofumi turned to me. "Aren't _you _the Sword Hero though?"

"My brother is far more familiar with video games than I, and therefore, far better acquainted with systems like this. I'm simply deferring to my betters." I shrugged carelessly.

"But, aren't we prohibited from working with each other?"

Yoyo grinned. "That's only of importance if we're _fighting _together, at least before the Wave hits. Not working together's practically suicide at that time if what the king said was accurate. Consider this...a group outing to the mall, so to speak."

"Um...alright, I guess."

"Sir Heroes." Suspicious stepped forward. "My name's Myne Suphia. It's an honour to fight alongside the Shield Hero, and to be in the presence of the Sword Hero and his brother."

Well, at least she acknowledged my brother's presence, unlike _so_ many others.

Updating tag to "Myne".

"I'm Naofumi Iwatani, Nice to meet you."

"Arthur Ferris, I go by 'Yoyo'." My brother gave a peace sign as he grinned at her.

I gave a small smile for appearances' sake. "Edwin Ferris, but you can call me 'One'."

With that, we got going in earnest, taking the first steps of what would be a great adventure.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"I've caught a glimpse from the balcony last night, but taking a closer look really drives it home that it's another world," Naofumi muttered as we walked.

And wasn't that the truth? This place looked like something out of the more rural cities of Cier, where technology was nigh-nonexistent. The fact that no one used Rice to power their magic was also a key difference.

All in all though, the market square we were travelling through reminded me of Highgate Landing, a trade hub I'd sought shelter in when-

-_re dead. All of them. Slaughtered. Blood everywhere dripping from my bla_-

-I'd fled that dreadful prison camp.

"What shall we do now, Sir Heroes?" Myne inquired.

"I was thinking we could hit up a smithy first-" Naofumi started.

"As far as ideas go, that's not a terrible one," Yoyo interrupted, "but there's somewhere else we have to go to first."

"Oh?" I raised an eyebrow at that.

"We need to get to the cathedral. I'll explain why once we're there." He turned to Myne and smiled. "I'm not terribly familiar with the town's layout though, so could you please lead us there?"

"O-Of course!" She seemed disarmed for merely a moment before smiling innocently once again. "Follow me!"

We arrived at an odd-looking building in short order. Three spires reaching into the sky made it look more like the head of a polearm than a cathedral, but we were then led inside by holy figures, who guided us deeper into the cathedral.

We then arrived at an hourglass. It was the biggest and most ornate thing I'd ever seen. I was also fairly certain that it'd break if I blew on it too hard.

"So, these hourglasses, right? The 'Ancient Dragon Hourglass' the king mentioned?" Naofumi and I nodded. "Well, I'm going to need you guys to step closer to it."

Naofumi and I looked at each other, shrugged, and took a few steps. Immediately, the gemstones in our weapon shot out a ray which connected with the hourglass.

A timer emerged in my HUD, counting down in days, hours, minutes, and seconds, steadily counting downwards.

What's more, I noted that it was practically the exact amount of time remaining until the next wave.

"What...what is this?" Naofumi's jaw hung open as he turned to my brother.

"It worked, then," Yoyo muttered before responding, "I just had you both sync to the Dragon Hourglass. This way, you can see how much time remains until the next Waves hit, and you'll be teleported to the general vicinity of the Wave when it does strike."

"Damn, that's pretty useful." I raised a brow approvingly. "So, are we done here?"

"Unless you have any business with the clergy, I do believe so." Yoyo grinned cheekily at me.

I nodded at that and turned to Naofumi. "So what were you saying about a smithy?"

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

The wooden doors opened with nary a creak.

"If it's metalwork you're looking for, I wholeheartedly recommend this place." beamed Myne.

My eyes roamed across the shop. Weapons and armour of all kinds were scattered throughout, all neatly hung on racks for display. And at the end of the shop stood a bald, well-muscled man with scars much like my own on his face.

Going to tag him as "Baldy" for now.

"Welcome to you all." He grinned amicably. "This your first time in a smithy? You sure know how to pick them."

"Well, the truth is we're actually here at her recommendation." Naofumi rubbed the back of his head nervously.

"Speaking of," his eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Myne, "Have we met before? You seem quite familiar…"

"I've come shopping here before," Myne replied as she latched onto Naofumi's shoulder, "your shop is quite famous, you know."

"You flatter me," He chuckled. "Who're your friends with the funny garb here, anyway?"

"Can't you tell, boss?" Yoyo asked, eyebrow raised.

"Oh, so you're some of the heroes, then?" He then took a closer look at Naofumi's arm. "A shield, I see. So you're the dud, then?"

Naofumi's smile was strained. I glared at the shop owner. "I would appreciate if you _didn't_ imply that my fellow hero is lesser in any way to me."

"O-Of course not." Baldy backtracked with haste. "I'll admit it was a joke that was made in poor taste."

Naofumi bowed respectfully regardless. "I'm Naofumi Iwatani, the Shield Hero. Pleased to meet you!"

"Naofumi, huh?" Baldy turned back to him and smiled. "Sorry about that slight just now. Truth is, so long as you'll be a regular, I wouldn't give two hoots if you wielded a shield or what. It's nice to meet ya kid."

Business before prejudice, huh? I can respect that.

"Anyway, boss," Myne spoke up, "Can you provide Sir Hero with the equipment he requires? Our budget is around, let's see...250 silvers."

He nodded pensively and turned to us. "What of you two, then?"

"Same budget. No need for weaponry." My words were short and to the point.

He nodded again, then went to the back, coming back out with four swords, laying them on the counter.

"From left to right is iron, magic iron, magic steel, and silver iron in ascending order of cost. I guarantee that no matter the price or material, they're swords of quality."

Naofumi's hand grasped the hilt of the third sword. "Wow, with one of these, even I coul-"

_*ZAP*_

The sword reacted by giving him a short zap, forcing him to drop it.

"The hell?" My eyebrows were raised as I watched him try to pick it up again, with both hands this time. A far more violent shock forced him to throw it from his hands over his head.

"Hey, watch it!" Yoyo hopped backwards as Naofumi shook his hands to get rid of the lingering effects of the shock. "There's people here!"

"Sorry!" Naofumi looked back at his hands. "But seriously, what's going on?!"

"I...don't get it either" Baldy was at a loss. Probably wasn't his doing then.

"It looked like it flew from your hands." No shit, Myne.

"What was…" Naofumi turned to the sword and paused. I tried picking the sword up myself, but dropped it as well when I got a harsh shock to my hands.

Felt like a toned down version of a taser shock.

A window then popped up.

**{CAUTION}**

_**Legendary Weapon Rule Violation: **__Holding Non-Assigned Weapon_

"Rule violation?" Naofumi muttered incredulously.

I was in a similar state of disbelief as I "clicked" into the help screen.

**{HELP}**

A hero may not hold, with intent to fight, any weapon other than their legendary weapon.

What kind of limiter was this?

"It...it seems like I can't use any weapons other than this shield." Naofumi muttered.

"Same case for me and this sword here." I frowned.

"How does that even work?" Baldy took a magnifying glass and examined the shield, all the while, the magnifying glass was glowing.

Naofumi and Myne seemed shocked, but Yoyo and I had seen stranger things before.

"At first glance," he continued, "it looks just like any other Small Shield...doesn't this come off?" He was now tugging at the shield, which remained firmly attached to Naofumi's arm.

"I can move it around my body," Naofumi replied, "but removing it isn't possible for me."

"That's bizarre." He tapped the gem on the shield. "I can tell that this thing holds great power, but my appraisal magic isn't telling me much beyond that."

The light in the gem seemed to fade.

"Well, thanks for showing me something interesting." Baldy chuckled as he stood up. "Want to buy some armour instead?"

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"Eighty-percent off."

Today was a fairly straightforward day.

"Are you stupid? Twenty percent extra!"

After we bought our armour, we went out and hunted mobs, where Yoyo showed me a trick regarding my weapon.

"Why's it going up?! Eighty-nine percent off!"

The trick involved me feeding parts of the mobs' corpses into my weapon to unlock and gradually master new forms for the sword. Seeing as it was low level mobs thus far, they weren't anything special, but hopefully, with time, that'd change.

"Anyone trying to haggle without seeing the goods deserve to pay double!"

Naofumi, on the other hand, struggled quite a bit to kill any of even the lowest level mobs. The tininess of his attack stat was only countered by his absurd defense stats, both physical and magical.

"Keep talking! Ninety percent off!"

The guy had multiple of the little fucking balloons biting down on him and literally no drop in HP. I've taken some bites from the assholes myself, and they _hurt_. It was like a man biting down as hard as he could onto your harm. Yoyo could attest to that as well, he still had some marks from where they'd landed.

"Twenty-nine percent extra!"

At any rate, we'd finished hunting, regrouped, and proceeded back into the castle city and the smithy we were at in the morning. Naofumi to buy some equipment for Myne, and us to ask about where to sell our drops.

The moment Naofumi walked in, he started haggling with the man, starting off at a ridiculous discount. Baldy had responded in kind by raising the price so that Naofumi had to pay extra.

"Stop raising the price already, One hundred percent off!"

I've seen frugal people before, but Naofumi was something else.

"Kid, that's just free!"

"Free's fine by me!"

My brother finally gave in and released his laughter. I allowed myself an amused smirk at the scene before me.

That turned into an inquisitive glance at the loud clanging of something metal meeting the counter.

...A lot of somethings actually, seems like Myne was done picking.

"Hey, Boss." Naofumi looked back to Baldy. "What's the total on that at sixty percent off?"

"Four-eighty silvers with a discount. No lower." The scarred smith did not budge.

"That'll leave us with...two hundred…" Naofumi turned to Myne. "Myne, could you downgrade a little? I'm not sure how much accommodations and other expenses cost yet."

"It'll be fine, Sir Hero. The stronger I am, the more loot I'll get from monsters. That should be enough to keep us going." She walked up to his side and pinned his arm to her breasts while she felt him up with her free arm.

Judging by the way he'd flushed, it was fairly clear he'd never gotten anywhere near this intimate with a person of the opposite sex yet.

Hm...despite her appearances and somewhat innocent act, it was fairly clear to me that she was manipulative in character. I highly doubt Naofumi has perceived that though.

"A-Alright, I guess...Ok. We'll be taking those, boss."

"Thanks a ton! Seems the Shield Hero's got an eye for good deals!" Baldy was extraordinarily enthusiastic about the deal being taken.

"Speaking of deals," my brother spoke up, having finally recovered from his fit, "do you know where we can sell these?" He pulled out a balloon skin from his bag.

"There are shops for monster materials out there. They'll buy most things off of ya."

"My thanks to you." My brother smiled.

The four of us left the smithy once more.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"To the first steps of our adventure, may it be bright and fruitful to us all. Cheers, everyone!"

The rest of us followed Yoyo's example and raised our flagons of ale with a call of "Cheers!"

Naofumi didn't take a sip from his, merely setting it back down while smiling happily. Maybe he's not used to drinking? Or hadn't drunk alcohol at all?

Whatever, not my problem.

"Man, the food is great!" Naofumi was devouring his food with gusto. "It was pretty good at the castle too, but the pubs are truly where to go to experience otherworld cuisine!"

"Otherworld, huh?" Yoyo smiled back at him from his left. "I suppose the term is appropriate enough."

We ate in amicable silence, and once the portions were done and the dishes were collected, Naofumi pulled out a map and set it onto the table.

"So, the meadow we were fighting in was over here, right?" He was clearly addressing Myne right now.

"Correct, and tomorrow we'll be heading to Lafan village, located beyond this map…"

I tuned them out as I turned to Yoyo. "Where do you think we should head tomorrow?"

"Well...I'm not sure, really. I don't know the lay of the land that well, so I have no real recommendations to make."

"Hm...we'll have to ask a local for information then, huh?"

"Or we could do as the king suggested." Yoyo shrugged.

He raised a good point, loathe as I was to follow the old man's words. If we had a companion who knew the land better than we did, they could be a guide to us as we travelled, teaching us skills and whatnot.

Ultimately though, I didn't trust that any companions that the king handed out would swear loyalty to us first and foremost. They probably had vows that were more important than the ones they swear to us, which makes them duty-bound to report our every action to a higher-ranked being that we may or may not know about.

In short, a spy.

"We _could _do that," I admitted grudgingly, "but we're not going to take the king's adventurers."

"I figured you weren't going to budge on that." Yoyo sighed, placing a palm to his face. "You always _were _the stubborn one of the two of us."

"Aren't you going to drink your wine?"

We paused at turned our heads. Sure enough, there was now a bottle of wine in addition to the ale, alongside filled glasses for Myne and Naofumi.

"...Nah, I'm not into booze."

"Really? This is pretty good, you know." She took a sip from the wine glass, let out a quiet sigh and shaking her head a little bit, looked back to Naofumi and whispered. "I'd _love _to have a drink with you."

Naofumi flushed once more, but I could tell that not drinking was something he wasn't going to budge on, willingly or not. "S-Sorry, I _really _don't like alcohol."

"Really? What a shame." She sighed again, with a tinge of disappointment colouring it now. "That's a hero for you, I suppose."

"Please elaborate."

She blinked owlishly at me for a moment, as if having forgotten I was there. Then she smiled as though that never happened. "Of course. You see, this country is a matriarchy. No man would ever dare turning down a drink offered by a lady."

Wait, _What?_

If this country's a matriarchy, then where was the queen? Why was the king presiding over our summoning, supposedly a matter of great importance, if the queen's the supreme authority of the country?

Unless she couldn't make it that day? Falling ill? Other duties taking up her time?

Whatever the case, _something _was keeping her from her throne, and there was not a doubt in my mind that it was something of importance.

"That so?" Naofumi wasn't as paranoid as I was, and therefore didn't come to the same conclusions. "I'm not terribly great at picking up on things like this."

"It's no issue, Sir Hero."

"I'm glad we got to discuss our plans moving forward." Naofumi rubbed at the back of his head bashfully. "I'd like to turn in early tonight, if that's ok with you."

"Of course. I'll head up after drinking some more."

He turned to look at me. "I suppose this is where we part ways then?"

I nodded. "Even though we're going to get rest as well, we'll be going our separate ways the next day."

"Consider your tutorial session over." Yoyo grinned. "We hope you enjoy the game."

He chuckled, then held out a hand for me to shake.

Smiling broadly, I took it in my own.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Amazing, isn't it, how one can say so much while saying nothing at all?**

**Or in other words, how I'm two chapters down and still not done the first episode?**

**Anyway, here's the second chapter, where the brothers take pity on the newbie of the group and show him the ropes. One suggested it for mainly pragmatic reasons, as he mentioned himself. As well, seeing as Naofumi now has a player familiar with the system accompanying his "party," there's no way he'd miss out on the Hourglass syncing at the beginning this time.**

**My personal opinion on the rule they introduced at the beginning of the anime, the whole "you can't work together" thing, is as One said in the last chapter: it's illogical. Why are you summoning the heroes as a group if they're all going to be split up anyway?**

**Of course, his opinion will probably change when he finds out that the four heroes weren't supposed to be summoned together.**

**But back to the rule, the whole "can't work together thing" was mainly for combat, I think. The Cal Mira arc only ****reinforced my view on that, especially seeing as they mainly split due to the exp distribution. Thus, I came up with the loophole that "so long as the heroes aren't in combat, it's more acceptable for them to be around one another."**

**Besides, it's not like they don't band together during the Waves anyway.**

**That's about all I have to say in this A/N. If you enjoy the content, please consider reviewing so that I may know where to improve my writing.**

**I do not own Rising of the Shield Hero, One, or Yoyo, nor Cier or any of the concepts from Cier that I brought up in this story, and least of all, Cier itself.**

**See you all around.**


	3. Chapter 3

**+The Sentence+**

* * *

"Why in the name of Rice did the damned king call us here this early?" Yoyo yawned as we marched through the corridors to the throne room.

"Fuck if I know." I irritably rubbed the sleep from my eyes and tried to do away with my lack of presentableness before we reached the throne room.

The two of us were called-quite early in the morning, might I add, to go to the throne room at once.

Well, we were just about here, now, and if he didn't give me a _damn _good reason for calling us here, I might just beat him to a pulp.

"You're thinking murderous thoughts again, aren't you?"

"No." my tone was perfectly even. "I assure you I am calm."

"Doesn't mean you aren't plotting bloody murder at the same time. You've always been quite the multitasker."

I snorted at that and pushed open the door.

"Greetings to you, Motoyasu, Itsuki, and-wait, miss Myne?"

Sure enough, there she'd stood in the equipment that Naofumi had bought for her yesterday.

What's going on here? Wasn't she partnered with Naofumi? Why was she standing behind Motoyasu?

"Wait, what's happening?" Yoyo voiced the thought bouncing around in my head.

"We're bringing a criminal to justice." Itsuki smiled reassuringly at my brother.

At that moment, the doors burst open again, and a number of guards dragged Naofumi in at spearpoint-

_-forcing me to my knees, clapping me in irons and bringing a branding iron dow-_

I shook my head to clear it. Losing myself in thought would do me no good here.

"What's going on?" Evidently he had no more idea what he'd done wrong than I did. He looked around and his eyes widened. "Myne, you're ok!"

Her expression only became twisted in fear and she hid herself behind Motoyasu, who, now that I think on it, was clad in a very familiar set of Chainmail Armour.

He seemed surprised at the look Myne gave him, then put it aside and turned to the king. "Yo, King! I had everything but my shield stolen while I was sleeping!"

I glanced suspiciously at Motoyasu and the lady beside him. There was only one person Naofumi gave his room access to. And neither me nor my brother were that person.

The set of Chainmail Armour looked more and more familiar to me.

"Please," Naofumi was still addressing the king, "find the-"

"Silence, scum!"

The man in front of me was just as shocked as I was at the king's yell. From all that I'd seen so far, Naofumi had no idea that he was guilty of anything, and yet the king behind me was convinced that he was.

I was missing something here, and I didn't like it one bit.

"Myne, you poor adventurer." The king addressed her, ignoring Naofumi completely now. "Could you please testify once more for us?"

Testify? For what?

"Th-The Shield Hero barged into my room drunk last night and pinned me down."  
"""Huh?"""

Naofumi, Yoyo and I all voiced that at once, all of us looking directly at Myne.

"He'd said that "The night was still young." and tore my clothes off!"

Wait, wait, wait-_what_?

"I somehow escaped and ran to Sir Motoyasu, who happened to be staying at the same inn, for help!"

"Wh-What the hell?" By the look in his eyes, it was fairly obvious none of that was true.

"If she hadn't told me to wait till morning and call for the guards, I'd have cut you down myself!"

Wait, now that I think about it, I did hear a commotion going on last night…

But it was nowhere near Naofumi's room.

"What are you talking about?!" Naofumi shouted back. "I went straight to bed after dinner last night!"

His eyes suddenly narrowed. "Wait...that chainmail...So you were the robber?!"

"Who are you calling a robber?" Motoyasu sneered back. "Myne gave this to me as a present when I met her at the pub yesterday."

"So in other words, she stole it?" Yoyo whispered to me.

I nodded pensively. "Probably."

"To think the Shield Hero would commit the greatest taboo in this country. In Melromarc, attempting to sexually assault a woman is punishable by death!"

Not too surprising, considering this was a matriarchy.

Speaking of which, why was the queen not here again?

"I'm telling you, you have the wrong idea! I didn't do it! If you're so convinced I did, bring out some proof already!"

Honestly though, evidence could do quite a bit in proving a man guilty or innocent.

Why did it take this long to bring some out?

"When we searched the Shield Hero's room, we found this on his bed." A guard kneeled before the king and-

What in the name of-?

A torn piece of underwear?

Myne squeaked in humiliation at the sight of it and Motoyasu roared at Naofumi, calling him an animal.

"There you have it," declared the king, "undeniable evidence."

Sure, it supports your accusation of him, but this proves what exactly?

"How?" Naofumi was in disbelief. "It wasn't there when I woke up!"

"What a shame." Itsuki shook his head in disappointment. "I was worried something bad might happen, but this...I thought you knew better, Naofumi."

"I already said that it isn't true!"

"You aren't the be all end all in this world." Motoyasu levelled his spear at the man who was already surrounded by spears. "Know your place!"

Naofumi made to stand up.

"Sir Motoyasu, I'm scared!" Myne hid herself further behind Motoyasu's back, but then she pulled her hands slightly away from her face slightly, so that her lip was revealed.

I don't know what the custom here was, but I was fairly certain an assault victim would not be smiling.

It only reinforced my belief that this entire thing was bull.

"I see...It was all a setup, wasn't it?!" Naofumi's expression twisted in rage as he saw the satisfied smirk on Myne's face. "You only partied with me to steal my equipment and money, huh?!"

"I don't think the man deserves mercy." Itsuki glared at Naofumi. "Committing a crime and dismissing all the evidence while making nonsensical accusations of his own?"

"It really was a mistake to summon all the heroes together."

"Exactly, they never should've summoned the Shield Hero."

More and more of these whispers drifted in from the peanut gallery.

*Stomp*

"SILENCE!"

Yoyo snapped before I did, that's a first.

"I'm derailing this farce." Yoyo's own expression was furious. "I can't fathom why you're all so damn _eager _to convict an innocent man."

Hushed gasps echoed at my brother's declaration.

"You are all skeptical." Yoyo echoed my words from yesterday morning. "I do not blame you for it. After all, all the evidence was shown, right? Now, what if–and hear me out here–just what _if_ the evidence was _absolute horseshit_?"

"A serious claim to make." The king glared at my brother. "What evidence could you possibly have to countermand the accusation?"

"I, as well as my brother, can testify as witnesses." I put my hand on his shoulder. "For you see, the two of us accompanied Naofumi for much of the day."

Sleaze Bag turned towards me, eyes narrowed. "But how? The rule of separation–"

"–is absolute bullshit." Yoyo cut him off. There was no sign of his usual joviality present. "Unfortunately, it's still a rule, so we couldn't fight together."

He smiled coldly, then. "Of course, the rule said nothing about out of combat situations."

"We were with Naofumi and Miss Myne for much of the day, as my brother said." I picked up where Yoyo stopped. "Even at the inn that apparently three of the Cardinal Heroes were at. We dined at the same table, no less, and I can confirm that Naofumi didn't so much as take a sip of any liquor."

I turned in a circle, casting my gaze upon everyone else who stood there.

"Not enough evidence? I could go on." Yoyo and I stepped around from where we were standing to face the king directly "My brother and I shared a room. Single bed. We slept in shifts to prevent someone from sneaking in and taking our silver and equipment. Neither he nor I have heard any commotion from Myne's room, but we heard a disturbance from Naofumi's, as well as what was supposedly miss Myne fleeing to Motoyasu's room."

"And how, exactly, does this prove Naofumi's innocence?" The king regarded me cooly.

My eyes narrowed. "With all due respect, Your Assness, I could ask the same of you. How exactly is a torn piece of underwear and your word _irrefutable evidence_ of Naofumi's guilt?"

"Silence! For daring to support a man who is _clearly_ guilty of assault and questioning the word of the rightful king, I declare the Sword Hero, Edwin Ferris, guilty by association!"

...So that's how we're playing it then?

Well, I've been guilty of worse things, so that's not really a huge thing against me.

"'Guilty by association'," I smirked emptily, "what a convenient falsehood for you lot to hide behind."

"The justice system in this place seems really fair. _Totally_ unbiased." Yoyo sneered at everyone gathered.

And to think, not two days ago he was telling me not to antagonize the ruling party.

I suppose they antagonized us first though.

"Fine then." Naofumi was far less calm than either of us. "I care not anymore, send me back to my world and summon another Shield Hero or whatever whenever you feel like. Screw all of this, why the hell should I have to go through this in a whole different world?!"

"You…" Itsuki glared at him in disgust. "After all you've done, how could you even think of not doing your job?"

"Yeah, get lost." Motoyasu sneered. "No one wants to fight alongside a rapi–"

My brother's yoyo zipped past his ear and cratered the wall behind him.

"Finish that sentence." His glare could've frozen Magmus Ridge. "_I dare you_."

"Just return us to our worlds already. You _clearly_ don't want any of us here." I wanted this farce of a trial to end before I snapped and killed the king.

Or everyone that wasn't Naofumi, me or Yoyo, really.

"As much as I'd like to do as you wish," the king sighed theatrically, "legend has it that new heroes can only be summoned once the previous ones die."

"So we can't even go home then?" Naofumi snarled.

"You certainly could. After you fight off all the Waves, of course."

So we're damned to fight for you bastards with the likes of Motoyasu?

"You're telling me we have to fight with people like them?" Motoyasu gave us a disgusted look.

"How amusing, I could say much the same." I sneered right back.

"Fuck that." Naofumi had reached his breaking point. "We'll handle the Waves our way."

He shoved the spearmen aside, who began going in to try and restrain him again.

This time, a wave of power from the shield blasted them backwards.

"So, Your Dicklessness, what shall it be?" Yoyo's fury was palpable. "Are you throwing us in the dungeons until the Waves arrive?"

"There's no point in doing so. The next Wave is almost upon us as it is. Scumbags or not, you are still the only ones who can fight off the Waves. However, knowledge of the Shield Hero's crimes have already been spread among the populace, and your support of him in spite of it will soon reach their ears as well. Do not presume that either of you will live decent lives in this country."

"I already know as much." Naofumi growled. He then turned to Motoyasu, and Myne who was still hiding behind him. "This is what you wanted right?" He pulled out a fistful of silver. "Take it then, and may you lot choke on it." He threw it to their feet.

We began to take our leave when Motoyasu rushed at us. "Now wait just a momen–"

I levelled my sword at his face without turning.

"You really shouldn't associate with us _dirtbags_." My tone alone could've cut him apart. "Who knows, our _evil_ might be contagious. Go back to your harem, _Spear Hero_."

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

It's been a day since the sentence passed. Naofumi finally hit level 2 after, apparently, fighting through all of last night.

Baldy gave him some basic equipment at five coppers so that he could at least survive the monsters, but that didn't change the fact that his attack power was practically crap.

The two of us did some fighting as well, and we'd reconvened at the gates so that we can sell some of our goods.

Mostly low-level mats, but we had no more need for those.

"How does 1 copper for a pair sound?"  
"Deal."

That was the conversation going on as we marched to the stand where a man was trading in orange balloon skins himself. Completing the transaction, he paled upon seeing our faces, and scarpered.

"Welcome." The trader greeted us curtly.

Naofumi was just as curt. "Buy these." He produced a bag of orange balloon skins.

I removed the bag on my own back, filled to the brim with orange balloon skins, and set it on the stand. "Mine as well."

"Orange balloon skins, huh? Hm...120 in all...how does 1 copper for the lot sound."

"Considering you were offering 1 for a pair earlier," Naofumi narrowed his eyes, "I'd say it sounds like crap."

"Was I now?" He shrugged carelessly. "You must understand that I have a business to run."

"Oh I do." Naofumi yanked him forwards by the collar, waving his cape aside with his left arm to reveal a number of orange balloons biting down on it. "Will these fetch a better price, perhaps?"

I smiled mirthlessly as Naofumi "bargained". All we really wanted at the moment was treatment equal to any ordinary citizen. It was kind of sad that we had to go to such measures to get it.

Then again, displays like the one Naofumi was showing me would never, ever get old.

"I'd bemoan about how we're acting like criminals," sighed Yoyo as the trader squirmed underneath Naofumi's cape of balloons, "but given that for all intents and purposes we _are _criminals, it's kind of a moot point."

Least we haven't had any bounty hunters after our heads.

Despite that thought, I couldn't help but feel as though we were being watched.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

A couple of nights after that, the three of us Reject Heroes were dining in a pub.

Naofumi had levelled up some more, and had also learned about weapon mastery from Yoyo. As well, he'd unlocked a shield that buffed mat quality, which was decent for getting things sold, I suppose.

Using the same materials he used for the shield yielded me the [Blade of Grass], which didn't deal much damage, but could stack a poisoning effect with each hit.

I assumed the poison only increased in potency as I levelled it up.

We were dining in silence when a group of people walked up.

"Oh great Shield and Sword Heroes." Jeez, his voice was greasy enough to give me diabetes. "We'll join your party."

"Yeah, yeah. Thank your lucky stars, the both of you." grinned a second one, clapping a hand on Naofumi's shoulder.

"Let us discuss the terms then." Naofumi didn't look up. "Your pay will be entirely performance-based. I trust you lot know what it means."

"Nope," boasted the first thug, "not a clue!"

They burst into raucous laughter before Naofumi interrupted. "It means that you'll be paid depending on the loot we earn. As leader, I'll take at least 40 percent, splitting the remainder at my discretion. Do nothing, and that's what you'll be paid."

"What the hell, that means you could keep it all for yourself!"

"No," I grinned, "he'll pay you fairly if you do the job.

"The key factor here, is of course, the word '_if_'." Yoyo eyed the three of them, looking as though he was calculating how to take them down.

"Well, then, let's go buy us some equipment, hey?"

At this point, we were out of the pub and on the streets of the city.

"Do it yourselves. I have no reason to baby you lot." Naofumi's voice was dead even as he spoke.

"Forget it then." The thugs gave up on pretense. "Fork over your money."

A yoyo lashed out-and straight into one of the men's groin.

"If you'd just said so earlier," Yoyo's smiled coldly as the man he'd struck keeled over bonelessly, "we could've saved ourselves a lot of time."

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

How did things come to this?

After we roughed up the thugs and forced them to scarper, we were approached by an even greasier man than Sleaze Bag, who'd offered the Shield Hero a solution to his party issues. Supposedly it was far more "convenient" than hired mercenaries.

I had my speculations on what that could've meant, and none of them were good.

"I don't like this, brother." Yoyo was fidgeting as we walked. "The man gives me bad vibes and so does his implications."

"I don't either," I admitted, "all we can do is remain vigilant."

We eventually arrived at a circus tent, kind of an odd sight when the surroundings were so run-down.

"Here we are." The man led us into the tent, inside of which were rows upon rows of cages.

And I could tell at a glance that what were contained were decidedly _not _animals.

"So," Naofumi started, "what exactly is it you're offering us?"

"Can't you tell at a glance, Sir Shield Hero? I'm offering slaves."

My blood ran cold.

"Slaves?" I repeated hollowly.

"Correct." The greasy bastard gestured widely. "I run a slave trading business."

Part of me wanted to kill him here and open up all the cages. That instinct was instantly and ruthlessly quashed.

I didn't need more shit to fuel the rumours' fire.

"What is it that makes you think that we want a slave, exactly?" Yoyo's eyebrows were raised, though he was also trying to mask his hostility.

"That would be the fact that they can neither lie nor betray their master."

...No. I've seen slavery in Cier, and I'm fairly certain that lying to one's master was possible.

Painful, certainly, if you were caught, but if one was careful enough, they wouldn't be.

"Slaves are placed under the effects of a curse. A potent, seal-based curse that can take one's very life."

Jeez, thank goodness _this _wasn't a thing in Cier.

"What say you, Sir Heroes?"

Naofumi didn't hesitate. "Show us your wares."

Why'd you have to lump us into this as well? Now we really _are _guilty by association.

"Very good, Sir Shield Hero. I can tell you have what it takes to be a wonderful patron!"

"We're really going through with this, huh?" Yoyo grimaced in distaste.

"Not as though we have a better choice." Naofumi's face was cold, but his eyes betrayed signs of his own apprehensiveness.

We marched down the rows of cages.

"I see there are non-human ones as well." Naofumi glanced at the cages as we marched.

"Oh no, they're human. Technically."

"Tell me more then." Naofumi didn't break stride. I'm not quite familiar with this world."

"Well," The slave trader hummed, "creatures that look human but aren't are called demi-humans. They're generally used for manual labour and servitude. Beastmen are demihumans who are more in tune with their bestial side, and are used as bodyguards or as participants in death matches that are gambled on."

Heh, so no matter where I went, racism was still the same, huh?

"But fundamentally, they fall under the same category?" Naofumi uttered tonelessly.

"Quite astute. And since demihumans are thought to be closer to monsters-"

"Prejudiced pieces of shit," I hissed venomously.

"-life would be hard for them in this human supremacist country." The slave trader continued as though he hadn't heard me. "As such, they're treated as slaves."

The three of us glanced around for a bit. There were rows upon rows of cages, piled one on top of the other. The animal features went as far as the eye could see: furred ears, reptilian skin, even nonhuman eyes that gazed unflinchingly back into my own every time I met them...

Seeing the lot of them here, all chained up, made me sick to my stomach. And the worst of it was, they'd likely be subjected to something worse-

-_toiling endlessly beneath the earth, under an ever-watchful band of capto-_

-if someone else more immoral than us "scum" to buy them, even possibly-

A quiet but persistent cough, followed by the rattling of chains, broke me out of my reverie.

Yoyo turned to me as I stared at my hands. "Brother, are you feeling ok?"

I took in a shuddering breath, repressing the damned memories that I could never seem to shake. "I'll be fine, Yoyo."

He didn't believe me, it was clear as day. But he let it go regardless.

I turned to where Naofumi had turned and strode over. "So, what was the noi-"

I froze.

The cage that Naofumi was facing held a brown haired demi-human, hair unkempt and dirty. Racoon ears stood at the top of her head, and judging by her complexion, it was clear she was sick. Most likely, she was the source of the cough.

But my attention-

-_boy with blue eyes and hair was forced to the ground next to me, clapped in irons just as I was. The cruel branding iron, once more, cam_-

-was focused on the cage next to hers.

"Yoyo…" I whispered.

"What is it?"

My gaze snapped back to him for a brief moment to confirm that he was there before I turned back to the cage.

Blue eyes glared tiredly back at me, framed by a mop of cyan hair, but that was where his similarities with Yoyo had ended. He had scales framing his cheeks and arms, and was clearly a different age of Yoyo, who stood beside me.

It was the age, however, that really struck me: he was roughly the same age as Yoyo when Blackwatch had invaded Aether.

"Brother…" Yoyo laid a hand on my shoulder. "Is this what you see in your nightmares?"

"No, I've seen worse." I didn't trust myself to give anything beyond a curt reply, because Yoyo had hit the nail on the head. My worst nightmares involved me failing to save Yoyo from sharing my fate, and the resulting images were something I tried my damnedest to forget.

Seeing this child before me wrapped in chains, however, brought it all back.

"Sir Heroes." The slave trader's voice brought me out of my stupor. "This is the slave I'd recommend." He pointed at a tarp-covered cage with his cane.

We marched over to the cage, where the man tore the tarp off. The wolf beastman slamming into the bars, snarling, nearly had me draw my sword on instinct.

"He's level 75, as you can see."

Nearly 8 times my and Yoyo's levels. I don't assume he was giving this to us for free.

"How much?" Naofumi came to the same conclusions as me.

"Seeing as it's highly proficient in battle, how does 15 gold for him sound?"

...We didn't even _have _gold.

"Showing us your most expensive slave knowing that we can't afford it, huh?" Yoyo scowled. His body language radiated his disapproval of the man.

"The heroes here are sure to become wonderful patrons of mine. I need them to develop an eye for the business as they go."

Don't be too sure of me being a patron of yours. I could just as easily slash all the locks off of the cages and burn your tent to the ground.

Of course, that would cause more issues than it would solve, but that was beside the point.

"Now then," grinned the fatass, "you've seen my best slave so tell me, what kind of slave do you want?"

"A cheap and obedient one." Naofumi responded.

"Cheap is the only criteria I really have." I followed.

"So, a demi-human then? I must warn you that they aren't suited to manual labour or combat."

"I'll train them if the need arises." Naofumi's tone was flat.

"Amusing words coming from someone who has no trust in people."

"But slaves aren't people. Training one would be no different than upgrading my shield."

Naofumi, I _really_ hope you don't mean those words. Otherwise, I'd have to kill you on principle.

Or _try_, anyway, seeing as you have a _bullshit _defense stat.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

It was finally over.

Naofumi picked the racoon-eared girl to purchase-Raphtalia, her name was. Supposedly she had a mental illness as well as her own physical ailment. Scars left on her by her previous owner, who, and I quote the slave trader here, "loved his torture."

For his sake, he'd better be dead. Otherwise, I'll find him and bring karma's guillotine down on his head.

I elected to buy-it still felt uneasy, using that term-the reptilian boy, Deos, who was apparently a gladiator in a slave-fighting ring who'd fought with his bare hands and nothing else until he was sold off to the trader for "behavioural issues."

At least they didn't cripple him physically for it, though the scars on his body said that they punished him severely.

At any rate, we'd finished binding our respective-ugh-slaves to us, and were on our way out of the tent with Naofumi dragging Raphtalia, who seemed unwilling or unable to walk for the moment.

What a clusterfuck of a week this was, let's hope that things start looking up come morning.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Abrupt ending, I know. It really was starting to get a bit long though.**

**So here's the trial scene, where words of witnesses mean nothing.**

**I was honestly debating how it would all go-after all, One certainly has the evidence to prove that Naofumi _isn't _guilty-when I realized that the king was also in on the plot.**

**Queen Mirelia outranked him, but she wasn't present, and thus, the highest authority of the kingdom was still _technically_ Aultcrazy, and he was dead-set on seeing the Shield Hero convicted. A word from a "supposed witness" wasn't about to change that.**

**The other heroes could've thrown their support behind One once they realized he had evidence though right...?**

**Yeah, no. Motoyasu is one hundred percent wrapped around Myne's pinkie, and Itsuki, who was also present for Myne's initial "convincing" performance, is also disinclined to believe him.**

**Slave trader. Not much to say about it except that the brothers disapprove, but have no real choice-no one with a choice would want to party with them.**

**And I added some more factors so that One does, in fact, pick up his own slave. Because of his-ahem-personal experiences, he will rarely use the seal on Deos unless it's absolutely necessary in his opinion.**

**Still no action, but we'll get to it very soon.**

**I solemnly swear that thus far, I own nothing except Deos.**

**See you all around.**


	4. Chapter 4

**+The Calm+**

* * *

I took a measured sip of broth as I glanced around me.

Everyone was watching the five of us dining, some more overtly than others, and hushed whispers were being exchanged.

In the morning, our motley group went back to the smithy where we'd been on the first day to purchase some equipment for our new...I'm calling them party members from now on. "Slave" just leaves a rancid taste in my mouth.

At any rate, Naofumi bought a basic dagger and some leather armour for Raphtalia, and I got a pair of bracers for Deos, who told me he was better at hand to hand than with any weapon.

He demonstrated on one of Baldy's spare suits of armour, who'd told us that if he could dent the platemail armour, he could have a set of leather armour free of charge.

I don't know what kind of magic he employed-and a magic effect took place, make no mistake-but he somehow struck hard enough to _shatter_ the entire thing to pieces.

He got the leather armour, but I had to pay up to cover the set of platemail he broke, which wasn't anywhere near cheap.

That left me in the same place as Naofumi when it came to finances-pretty desperate.

To put it in perspective, pooling my and Naofumi's funds together would yield five silvers, and three of them were Naofumi's.

Well, what a fine start to the day _this _was

At any rate, we finalized our purchases and went off to eat lunch, at Raphtalia's stomach's request.

We brazenly ignored the "No Demihumans" sign at the door. If they had a problem, they could take it up with us personally.

Naofumi just ordered their cheapest lunch option. Deos and I opted for a broth, as neither of us were really hungry to begin with. Yoyo bought a small sandwich, and Raphtalia got a kid's meal at Naofumi's request.

We ate in relative silence. The occasional whisper from one of the other tables would frantically be hushed by another person close to them.

After all, Naofumi may have been a sham in attack power, but I was not.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"Hah!"

*crack*

"Again!"

"Hiyah!"

*crunch*

"My brother can punch better than that!" Ouch, that one hurt, Yoyo. "Again!"

"Rah!"

*crackle*

We were still in the woods surrounding the castle city, or as Yoyo put it, the "Beginner's Area". Truth was, we could've left long ago as is-My and Yoyo's levels were high enough to make up for any deficit on Deos' part.

We stayed behind for two reasons. Number one was Naofumi and Raphtalia. I wanted to ensure that they'd be alright and also wanted to see just what and how severe the penalty of having two heroes sticking around each other would be.

The second was to train Deos.

His magic was powerful, certainly, but he lacked the skill to use it properly. To rectify that, my brother was training him with his admittedly limited knowledge in unarmed combat.

Even so, armed with that knowledge, he single handedly defeated Deos in a short spar to prove his own ability.

"That's enough." Yoyo held a water canteen out to Deos. "We'll have a short break, then we're practicing on mobs."

Deos nodded in assent as he gratefully took the canteen.

I, meanwhile, was feeding items to my sword to boost its capabilities. Items such as some of the potions we had, making it so that buffs and debuffs inflicted were more potent, as well as more herbs to boost my [Blade of Grass]. At this point, a small nick from it could kill a balloon within seconds.

I wondered what other items could do to the sword.

I was also gaining exp as my brother and Deos fought alongside me through the "party system", which was something neither that Myne lady nor Yoyo mentioned. Yoyo was apologetic about it when I brought it up, defending himself with the fact that there was too much happening around him for him to keep track of things like that. He'd apparently honestly forgotten that I was not at all familiar with game systems.

I forgave him for it. After all, other than the whole "status magic" thing, it was really nothing like a game. People bled and died-

_-falling by the droves to the green-edged blade-_

-just as they would in Cier, and I'd caught my brother muttering something about "NPC's" several times.

Really, it's quite easy to forget that this was apparently based off of fiction.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"So, Naofumi," I muttered as I eyed the newest addition to my arsenal, "what are your plans for tomorrow?"

The newest weapon form looked more like someone took magma and shaped it into a sword, then left it out in the air to cool roughly 3 hours ago. It had an ebon body with polished edges, and running down the length was a crack glowing red-hot.

This [Ember Sword] came about when I decided to drop a piece of hot charcoal from the fire pit in front of me into my weapon for it to absorb. It dealt decent damage, and also applied a "minor burn effect" for each strike.

I suppose fire's still as effective as ever when it came to killing things.

"I've been thinking about heading deeper into the forest." Naofumi frowned as he crushed up some herbs, his [Small Shield] having been swapped out for a variant of sorts. "Now that I have a slave-"-my brow twitched at the word-"-to fight for me, I'll be able to level up at a halfway decent pace. Issue is that we can't do it around each other at all, otherwise I'd probably ask you to come with me."

It turns out that the reason the rule existed was because having multiple heroes fighting around each other would make the exp gain null and void. A huge disadvantage when it came to, as Yoyo put it, "grinding levels", but something that could probably be overlooked in the Wave.

It may just be me, but I prioritize survival before getting stronger.

"Let's face it," I sighed, "our situation is less than ideal. I can make up lost time from King Asshole's shitshow." Naofumi choked back a laugh at that. "You, on the other hand, need as much help as you can receive. Issue is, with so many out to get you, you aren't sure who can be trusted. And because of it, you keep others at arm's length, but because of the lack of trust, people aren't likely to place their trust in you in turn."

"A vicious cycle indeed." Naofumi grunted as he wrapped the crushed herbs into another leaf, tying it up with some string.

"What are you making anyway?"

"Medicine. Apparently rather than giving me offensive boosts, my shield grants me perks that are more supportive or passive in nature, such as improving mat quality or giving me proficiency in crafting and such."

"Sounds pretty practical, considering you can simply harvest things as you go along." I hummed in thought. "That reminds me, you brewed Raphtalia's medicine too, right?"

"It was a low-level broth, nothing too impressive."

"'Nothing too impressive' he says." My brother sat down heavily beside me. "As if learning basic _and_ intermediate pharmaceutical skills within days is something anyone is capable of." Naofumi looked a little sheepish at that. "What are you going to do with all those anyway?"

"Sell them, obviously. I need money for better items and equipment, both for myself and Raphtalia, but seeing as I can't sell drops like you as easily, I'll sell craftable or harvestable items instead."

"Sounds interesting." I put a hand to my chin. "Can you teach me some of the basics? I want to be able to make healing items when we're roughing it."

"In the future, maybe." Naofumi muttered as he placed some more herbs onto the makeshift pestle. "But I imagine you'd want to part ways starting tomorrow, considering the ever-increasing skill gap between us. You can watch for tonight, if you-"

"No!"

Raphtalia's outcry drew the eyes of the three of us and startled Deos into wakefulness.

"No…! Daddy...! Mommy…!"

"What's wrong?" Naofumi was at her side in an instant. "Stay calm!"

He pulled her in for a hug as she cried for her parents, doing his damnedest to comfort her.

"Poor girl." Yoyo frowned in sympathy. "Her scars must run deep."

"I can only imagine." I murmured quietly as I glanced over to where Deos had laid back down.

Only an inattentive man could've missed the way his eyes glazed over and darted around when he woke up, the way he'd tensed as though he would jump at the next thing that moved, or the way that his teeth were bared, as though trying to intimidate an unseen foe.

I had the sinking feeling that Deos had just as much, if not more baggage than Raphtalia did.

"_Still,_" I thought as I looked back to where Naofumi was hugging a sobbing Raphtalia, "_if Naofumi treats her like this despite his callous words on the whole slavery matter, maybe she'll turn out alright._"

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"Ow! Pain! Aiee!"

"Damn it, Deos, hold still! I can't administer the salve if you keep fidgeting."

I ignored both my brother and Deos as I stared at the window in front of me.

**{CAUTION}**

_**Legendary Weapon Rule Violation:**_ _Discarding Legendary Weapon._

I pulled up the rule itself in my "HUD".

**{HELP}**

_A Hero may not discard his associated Legendary Weapon for any and all reasons whatsoever._

The warning had triggered when a [Feral Rabbit] mob jumped out of the greenery, bounding straight for Yoyo.

Naturally, I couldn't allow that, and so my first instinct was to throw the sword at it.

Foolish thought it may seem, it was actually an ingrained habit that was part of my style, after having used my former sword for years on end that way..

When I tried it with the [Legendary Sword], however, it poured enough electricity into me to knock out a lesser man as I was winding the throw up.

As it was, though, I was less than disposed to help intercept the mob, so Deos stepped in, and was rewarded with a harsh bite to the arm.

Yoyo killed it with ease, in the end, and used what knowledge he'd gleaned from Naofumi's medicine crafting to try to stopper the wound until he could create a proper antidote.

Or ask Naofumi for one, anyway.

I looked back to the help menu and finally dismissed it, falling into a pensive mood.

This could be troublesome. I'll have to redefine my style in order to avoid having to overcome this debilitating shock again.

I'll start on that tonight, I suppose.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

Before I knew it, we were back in the smithy once more.

"Sell us a new weapon for this much." Naofumi grunted as he tossed a pouch of coins onto the countertop.

In the downtime between sleeping, eating, and grinding, we decided to devote some time to teaching Naofumi and Raphtalia a few things about combat.

Naofumi had joined Yoyo as he taught Deos. After all, even if you couldn't deal damage, it still paid to learn how to throw, block, or avoid hits. That shield of his didn't exactly extend his striking range after all.

I, on the other hand, taught Raphtalia swordplay. Every scrap of wisdom I possessed, from stances to feints and counters, I did my best to impart onto her in the time I could. I had her drill for quite a bit each day before dinner, and I also began to hunt mobs with her when Naofumi was learning with Yoyo.

There was no EXP gain, but the experience she gained in live combat was arguably more valuable.

"I suppose it's time to get the little lady a sword then. Something on the short side for now." Baldy replied.

I should _really _get around to asking him for his name someday.

He stepped around the counter and went to a wooden crate in the corner. He then dug out a sheathed blade that was more akin to a dagger than anything. "How about this one? Iron Shortsword. Decent quality and fairly cheap."

Naofumi considered for a moment. "...Boss, are there any towns or villages around here that we can travel to with our current gear and levels?"

"Well," replied Baldy, pulling out a map, "with your equipment, it'd have to be here." He pointed to a place on the map.

It was only then that I realized that I couldn't read the language at all.

That was going to set me and Yoyo back quite a bit...

"Lute Village. Small and quiet place. You can probably find some new mobs or things like that there. Swordy and his party could travel a tad further beyond, to here." He pointed to a spot further away from Lute. "Felwind. It's a border colony only established a few years ago, and was one of the places that were hit extremely hard by the Wave without being utterly decimated. I'm sure there's lots of work to be found there, among other things."

"I see." I turned to Naofumi. "So this is where we part ways, then?"

"We'll have to, yes. Mobs here are giving diminishing returns even for me now."

He then smiled. Not one of those bitter or sardonic ones that I'd often see on his face ever since we got convicted, but a truly genuine smile. "Thanks for helping me out over the course of the last few weeks, I learned quite a bit from both of you."

"As did we from you." Yoyo smirked back at him. "I'll be putting your medicine crafting lessons to use soon enough."

In a parallel to that day at the tavern, I held out my hand for Naofumi to shake. "I'll be seeing you around, and it sure as hell won't be at your funeral service."

"Who do you take me for?" Naofumi chuckled as he took it without hesitation. "I'm a shield bearer. I'm not going down so easily."

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

I yawned not at all subtly as we walked through the gates to the shanty township of Felwind.

Really, to even call it that was inaccurate.

The buildings were surrounded by a rough wooden palisade. A decent defense that would repel scattered groups of mobs, perhaps, but fare terribly against any kind of organized group. The houses were a toss-up between carved stone bricks or wooden logs, with some of them a patchwork of both.

The tension here was palpable. Everyone who was able to were carrying weapons, and they eyed the three of us newcomers warily. Not that they'd really be able to do anything against us if they tried, but I'd really rather avoid confrontations altogether.

Causing a bloodbath kind of set the mood when time came for negotiations, after all.

Marching into what remained of the town square, we stopped.

"We're here to see the leader of this place." Yoyo called out.

"Purpose?" drawled a lady sitting on a log, who was eyeing us as she idly twirled a knife in her left hand.

"Here to give some assistance." Deos grunted. "Y'all could use some by the looks of it."

Her eyes narrowed. "...Down that path. Largest hut at the end." She then shooed us away, twirling her knife the whole time.

"You can't just talk to people like that." Yoyo admonished him as we distanced ourselves from the potentially psycho knife lady.

"Why not? Worked plenty well for me so far."

"We're in civilised society now, and there's a certain level of decorum to be employed when talking to others. Your level of speaking may be able to pass when you're in the arena, but it won't do outside of it."

"Tell you what," I turned to him as I spoke. "We'll learn the language together regularly, whenever we can spare the time."

"Why are you bothering to?" Deos looked confused. "You're all speaking good as far as I see."

"My weapon translates for me and my brother got a crystal ball for the spoken language. Much like me, however, he can't read or write worth a damn."

"Shuddup." My brother punched my arm again as we came up to the house of the leader. "We'll talk more about this idea later today."

I knocked on the door thrice in rapid succession.

And was rewarded with an axe levelled at my face when the door opened.

"Rude." My tone was as empty as my gaze.

"I know." The graying man lowered his axe. "But I can really never be too careful these days."  
"And yet you lowered the axe." Yoyo noted.

"None of you seem like bandits, so I'll trust that I have nothing to fear right now."

"Bandits?" Deos' eyes suddenly seemed to spark with a feral light.

"Aye, they've been causing us a lot of trouble recently, and the kingdom can't spare anyone to help. Would you care to give some assistance to our settlement, strangers?"

"We'd be happy to." Deos ascertained, the spark fading from his eyes. He was still unusually tense, however.

"Right." The man took a deep breath. "Name's Ormond. I used to run this village. Nowadays, there ain't much left to run. People are talking about moving back to the capital. Frankly, I'd join them, but unless we get escorts, it's a doomed operation in and of itself."

"Anyone volunteer for the job?" I inquired.

"Friendo, I've been sending letters day and night to the capital requesting aid. Truth is, few are willing to bother with a border colony like ours to begin with, and with the roads so dangerous nowadays, the numbers dwindle further."

Ormond sighed heavily, scratching at his beard. "I did end up finding someone though, some mercenary band who'll escort us to the capital once we reach Lute Village."

"Sounds reasonable," I nodded pensively.

"You aren't going to ask for pay like the last guy?" Ormond raised an eyebrow at me.

"To put it diplomatically," I smiled sardonically, "I don't think your settlement's in any condition to pay anything to anyone."

Ormond winced, not answering the question.

"Back on track." Yoyo gestured to the three of us. "What do you need us to do?"

"From what I can make of you lot, not much." Ormond's eyes glanced back and forth between the three of us. "You can see that everyone here's armed with something right? Truth is, not everyone knows how to use weapons, they just carry it for peace of mind."

"Or a last resort." I interjected thoughtfully.

"That too," nodded Ormond in agreement, "it's not much, but it's more than your own fists if you're cornered by a monster or some outlaw." Deos' eyes narrowed at that. "Issue is, we're going to be moving through these woods, where there are still leftover mobs from the Wave-"

"-Plus those bandits you mentioned-" Deos interjected.

"-And you want us to provide bodyguard duty." Yoyo fingered his chin as he pondered. "Would it be possible for us to keep the whatever the monsters drop?"

Wow, haggling like that straight off the bat? I didn't think you had it in you, Yoyo.

"Heh." Ormond chuckled dryly, "Figures that I can't escape paying for something even now." He waved a hand dismissively. "The drops are all yours. My concern is getting the people I'm in charge of to safety."

"As any responsible leader should." I nodded approvingly. "How long would it take for you all to pack up and be ready to go?"

"We'll probably be ready by tomorrow." Ormond sighed and scratched at his beard. He's been doing that a lot. "In the meantime, do your best to settle in and get some shut-eye. We don't have many accommodations as you can see, so chances are you'll be sleeping on the floor."

"We're willing to forgo comfort." My brother gave a curt nod to Ormond. "We'll see you tomorrow then."

With that, we set off to pitch our tent a ways off of the village, awaiting the coming day.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Good god it's _finally _done.**

**This took far, _far _longer that it should've.**

**As for why it took so long?**

**A combination of life and school.**

**I detest the both of them and they hate me right back.**

**Raphtalia has learned swordplay from One, and Yoyo taught some basic wisdom in hand-to-hand to Deos and Neofumi, with the three of them possibly learning the language in a few chapters.**

**Fact is I could've posted it after I got to where Naofumi and One shook hands again, but it didn't feel like the right place to do so.**

**Assuming I ever get there. Inspir****ation's been running low for a bit now.**

**No chance I'm discontinuing this though, that I can promise.**

**I own nothing save for OCs.**


	5. Chapter 5

**+The Preparations+**

* * *

It took us a day to get to Felwind, but it took an entire week for the caravan itself to get back to Melromarc.

Just a scant two days before the beginning of the Wave.

Most of it was due to the town's population being composed of sick and injured, likely from the aftermath of the previous Wave. Yoyo treated them on the road as best as he could with the knowledge imparted onto him by Naofumi as he operated in rickety, makeshift carts that jostled at every pebble.

I, on the other hand, had to deal with leading the portion of the populace who were combat-ready. Drilling them in tactics, as well as basic combat training. Anyone who was untrained, but fit for battle, were also trained, mainly as archers, spearmen, or shield bearers: the citizens were no strangers to manual labour, and their physical strength was nothing to scoff at.

Of course, due to their relative lack of experience, the three of us drilled them all in basic offensive and defensive group tactics. They weren't elites by any stretch of the definition, but they were enough to repel disorganised forces.

Good thing too, because Ormond wasn't kidding when he'd told me that the bandits were causing trouble. They'd come so often in the dead of night, when most of the people were asleep, that I had to arrange guard shifts during the night. Those who would undertake that task were allowed to sleep on the travelling wagons during the day to restore their strength.

And this was saying nothing of the monsters that would wander near the camp. Whether they were looking for a snack or they were spooked into our camps by brigands, who used the chaos to rush into the camp to try and pillage, they were huge nuisances, especially if bandits attacked the camp at the same time.

Or at least, they would've been, had we not been around.

The people of the former colony of Felwind were no strangers to hardship and when equipped properly, even with wooden spears, shoddy defenses, and makeshift bows, they were more than a match for the disorganised mob groups, leaving the sweeping of the bandits to me, Yoyo, and Deos. He'd levelled up a lot during that time, and seemed to grow physically at a remarkable rate.

The brutality in his actions, however, unsettled both Yoyo and I: the two of us generally spared the bandits who surrendered. Deos did not. He'd slaughter each and every one he came across. Each and every man, whether on his feet, knees, or hands, were turned into a pile of blood and mangled flesh. Each and every one were brutalized worse than the last.

Thus, though Yoyo and I earned goodwill from the settlers, Deos' feedback was more...mixed. Some were emboldened by his drive when it came to putting down the bandits that seemed to never relent as they attacked, many others, however, were fearful of his bloodlust: more than once, Yoyo and I had overheard some of the former residents of the colony wonder to themselves if they would be on the receiving end of Deos' fists themselves after the bandits stop throwing themselves at the encampment.

If Deos ever caught wind of the comments, he obviously didn't let it weigh him down.

It all came to a head on the third day of travel, when we arrived at the village where the mercenaries were supposed to take the villagers to the capital.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"_So, Kelhorn is just past these woodlands, then?"_

"_Won't be long now, Sir Edwin."_

_The attacks had decreased in relentlessness as we progressed through the forested areas, and practically dropped to nothing as we made it past the thickest portions of the forestry._

_Thank goodness for that; I wasn't sure how much more Felwind's residents could take before finally cracking under pressure. No one, no matter how hardy, could weather a constant campaign waged against them from the shadows._

_Brushing the branch out of my face, I gazed upon the village of Kelhorn._

_Or at least, the ruins of where it once was._

"_The hell?" Yoyo rubbed his eyes blearily, the constant threat of attack obviously having taken its toll. "I'm not still asleep, am I?"_

"_No...we're all seeing this." Ormond's spare hand was on his axe, his other on a roughly-crafted wooden buckler. "I don't like this, Sir Hero."_

_Considering we were travelling together for a couple of days now, keeping my status as legendary hero only got harder as time went on. I had to come clean last night after using my [Ember Sword] to drive away a particularly hardy monster, likely one of the leftovers from the previous Wave._

_Pushing those thoughts aside, I nodded in agreement. "Something's definitely wrong. Everyone, turtle formation!"_

_Turtle formation, as Yoyo and I dubbed it, consisted of the "shield"-bearing villagers surrounding the others within, and those on the second-most outer line wielding spears pointing outwards. Decent in melees, or at least in theory._

_I doubted the so-called equipment, even after we reinforced it the best we could over the last few days, could hold up to anything heavier than a scimitar swipe, but it'll have to do._

_In solemn silence, we marched into the ruined village. Passing smashed windows, charred husks of houses, and bodies by the dozens._

"_Shit…" I silently echoed Deos' sentiment. "What the hell could've caused this carnage?"_

"_Wouldn't _you _like to know?"_

_They emerged from the ruined households that they no doubt razed. Tens by ten, they fanned out to surround us._

_All nasty-looking._

_All better equipped than the refugees of Felwind._

_All eyeing our outnumbered group hungrily._

_Yoyo's face lost its drowsy demeanour while my grip tightened on my sword. In contrast to our calm, Deos' expression was downright murderous,_

"_It was so easy," The nastiest looking thug, and presumably the leader of this band of outcasts sneered at us, "so stupidly easy to draw you towards us. Razing this village, killing that messenger you sent out, and forging a reply to send back to you lot...heheh...now, we can claim the loot of _two _villages for the price of one. Now, seeing as you're all lacking in monetary compensation, how about you give us your bodies instead? I bet they'd fetch some good prices on the black mark-"_

_Deos' restraint broke and with a wordless bellow, he charged._

_The swishing of projectiles repeated as I watched him get impaled several times over by the arrows fired by bandit archers._

_My grip only tightened further as my eyes narrowed._

_Primary objective set: forceful neutralization of opponents._

_Secondary objective set: keep the villagers and Deos safe._

"_Hah. What a fool. If this is all the resistance you can offer than you might as well surrender now!"_

"_Shield bearers." My voice sounded distant to me. "Brace yourselves. Lancers to positions, let none who enter your range leave unscathed. Archers. Prepare to rain hell upon those bastards on my signal. You'll know it when you see it."_

"_Give it up." One of boss bastard's goons smirked wickedly at me. "You're outclassed and outnumbered. Admit defeat while you can."_

"_Outnumbered? Certainly." Yoyo's voice overflowed with disdain. "Outclassed? Not exactly."_

_I took a deep breath, steeling myself-_

"_[Party Accel]."_

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

Those two words cemented their fates.

[Party Accel] was, by all rights, a simple spell to cast. Even if it did take me the better part of the last few weeks to coax it from the grimoire that Ormond gave me, saying that it would be better in my hands than wasting away in the locked chest he was kept in his house. As its name implied, it sped up all members of the caster's party, including the caster themselves, by bolstering their DEX stats by 50% at the base level that it was currently at.

Considering that Yoyo and I both possessed an extraordinarily high DEX stat, even just a 50% increase allowed us to turn what would've been a difficult battle into what was only a challenging one.

Thank goodness that there was only one person with major injuries, and that Yoyo's medical skills have progressed enough to at least stabilize Deos without any decent healing items on hand.

"Many thanks for your assistance, Sirs Edwin, Arthur and Deos."

My brother smiled kindly at the old leader of Felwind. "It was no trouble, I assure you. I wish you luck in your future endeavours, Ormond."

He nodded and walked off.

"Oi, Edwin." Deos jerked his head towards a trussed up woman, unable to gesture with his still healing arm. "What are we to do with _her_?"

"Her" was the villager we saw on our way to meet Ormond for the first time, the one who was twirling a knife in her hands. It turned out she was an inside agent for the bandit group we'd massacred, the one who delivered the message to Ormond and the person who'd guided everyone to Kelhorn where the band of marauders were waiting. She'd fired an arrow at me when my back was turned, thinking the fight was over, and Deos, who was having his injuries tended to by Yoyo, managed to prevent it from hitting me by using his palm as a shield.

He then body slammed into her and took her down, pinning her long enough to be restrained and interrogated.

The fact that she was still here and not in a ditch somewhere raised some questions on Deos' part.

"Well," I began, "I was thinking we're short on party members-"

"No." Deos instantly shot it down.

"You haven't even heard my idea yet."

"Given the context," my traitorous brother supplied, "I'm pretty sure it's a bad one."

"Will me telling you I _wasn't_ thinking about immediately untying her and adding her to our party change your mind?"

"Given that you specified 'immediately'?" Deos' eyes narrowed. "Not really."

I sighed. Nothing I did ever seemed to get past my brother, and now he had another pair of eyes and ears to divine my intentions.

"Alright," I sighed, "seeing as neither of you are going to let this go, here's my latest hare-brained idea."

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

"The both of you have grown quite a lot! Nothing like the pipsqueaks you used to be."

Baldy-no, _Elhard_-wasn't kidding. I never took a proper look at Deos' growth while we were battling for our lives, but he'd matured noticeably from when I'd bought him, looking as though he was in his late teens than ten years old. Raphtalia's physical state was much the same, looking more like she was transitioning into puberty than a child only barely out of infancy.

I assumed their biology was somewhat unique in comparison to that of the average human.

"You think so, do you?" Naofumi replied blandly.

"Huh, someone's hard to please."

"And quite surprised. This country's full of lolicons."

Yoyo coughed. Loudly.

"Like, I understand people finding little girls cute, but…" he paused, eyes looking at an event that the rest of us were blind to, "...you people take it _really_ far."

"'Lolicon?'" I whispered to Yoyo.

"People sexually attracted to young girls."

My eyelid twitched. No matter how you spelled it, Raphtalia was _far _below an appropriate age for people to be attracted to, even if she was no longer a child.

"Kid," Elhard sighed, leaning over the counter, "do you know what Demi-Humans are like?"

"Boss, forget that!" Raphtalia interrupted, marching up to them. "We need some equipment for Naofumi-sama! Do you have recommendations?"

I didn't quite understand the "sama" part, but given the context, it probably denoted respect of some kind.

"On that note," Deos piped up, "Sir Edwin needs an upgrade too."

""Aren't we here for _your _equipment?"" Naofumi and I spoke in tandem.

"I appreciate the thought," Raphtalia didn't relent, "but you need to consider your own safety as well! Don't forget how you got hurt in the plains!"

"That goes double for you, Mr. I-Have-Absolutely-Nothing-In-My-Defense-Stats." Deos' brow was furrowed as well. "I don't care how good you are at dodging, you can't evade what you don't see."

The truth was, my instincts were so honed that any threat aimed at me would trigger them, but I doubted Deos was interested in hearing anything of the sort.

""Ok, but you still need a weapon..."" Once again, Naofumi and I spoke simultaneously.

"_Naofumi-sama_." Raphtalia's tone got colder. "If you don't stop messing around with your life like this," in the blink of an eye, she'd unsheathed one of the swords Elhard was displaying and brushed her fingers against the edge, Naofumi's widened eyes reflected in its surface, "you'll surely lose it."

...If she got _that _from me, Yoyo will probably murder me, to say nothing of what Naofumi would do, low ATT be damned.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

We'd managed to strike a deal in the end.

Raphtalia got a new sword and Naofumi some custom-made armour for his personal use. Yoyo and I, like Naofumi, would receive custom armour for the cost of some materials to make the item itself in addition to the usual fare. Deos was also due to receive custom equipment, due to most merchants not selling gauntlets built for offensive purposes.

Thank goodness we hadn't sold the excess material gathered throughout the month yet.

We reconvened at Elhard's smithy the next day to receive our new gear, with varying levels of excitement.

"It suits you perfectly!"

Raphtalia was the most captivated out of all of us.

"I call it the [Reptilian Scale Mail]! You're rocking it damn well, kid!"

It was quite the sight. While the layer worn underneath the armour was simply a black shirt, the actual armour, covering most of his upper body and including cuisses, was woven of emerald green scales with a silver border.. The entirety of the set was cloaked by his usual green cape.

It wasn't because of aesthetic. Those were actual monster parts we'd supplied for the creation of his armour, and it was the materials that had the armour grant him a boost not only to his defensive stats, but also his DEX.

"I look like I'm freaking Godzilla...you realize I'm supposed to be a hero, right?" Naofumi, in contrast to Raphtalia, was the least enthusiastic about this debacle.

"You are one." Yoyo moved around as he spoke. "No matter the garb, a hero's a hero. So long as you're sure of that, it matters not what you look like

"I assure you, the aesthetics are a mere side benefit of new and updated armour." I examined my own set of armour as I spoke.

Yoyo's [Ranger's Leathers] was exactly as the name implied; hardy leathers that shored up some P. DEF for him, and also boosted DEX a bit, which was apparently a stat that influenced bow users. A hooded mantle completed the look. Usually, it'd have been green, but Yoyo specifically requested sky blue for the shade.

My own equipment, the [Stormbound Mantle], was a touch fancier, if a bit heavier. A blue trench coat covered a metal chestplate, with shoulder guards and vambraces over the coat, and shin guards on the legs. It not only provided a decent bonus to my defensive stats, but also gave me a very appreciable upgrade to my DEX stat.

"Still," Naofumi sighed, "considering you tailor-made this for me, with material that One had gathered, it'd be a waste not to wear it."

"Damn straight." Deos flexed his gauntlet-covered fingers, examining the craftsmanship. The [Silver Bracers] and [Silver Greaves] were a matching set of silver weaponry. The leg protectors extended to cover the toes of his boots and the fingertips of his gauntlets were clawed. The weapons also gave him an additional bonus against monsters with the [Creatures of the Night] and [Undead] traits.

I didn't know what the first one meant.

"You really went out of the way to get me some equipment too, huh?"

I turned to look at Cerise. The bandit who shot at me, the double agent that Deos had restrained, the one we brought back to Melromarc in spite of that.

The one I made my newest slave.

It wasn't a decision I'd made easily, and one that Yoyo argued against vehemently, but it was really a logical choice, all things considered. We were still lacking in information and Deos, for all that he was a local of the world, was low enough on the social standing that information he could provide us was limited. She was extraordinarily skilled with a bow, as we found through interrogation, and our party had no such support in the past.

Plus, if we were to induct her into our party with no slave crest, she was likely to try and end our lives out of principle, and if we simply left her to drift-which was unlikely considering Deos still held a grudge against her and generally ended his grudges in violence-she was likely to try tracking us down either way.

Our alternative was to kill her off, but I was less than enthused about _that _option. Physically, she was only a young adult, younger than most of the other bandits. An innocent face among the rough and hardened ones of the now-either-dead-or-arrested bandits, and it was clearly taken advantage of. For another, her capture faced little to no resistance at all, and she seemed to display more remorse at her actions when we interrogated her.

Essentially, we had to keep her under watch, and make sure she didn't stab us dead while we weren't looking. And the easiest, and arguably one of the most humane ways to do so, was through a slave crest.

It's a sad time indeed when something as abhorrent as a slave crest becomes the most _humane_ option for anything ever.

Nevertheless, my brother finally caved with great reluctance, and we made another trip to Beloukas' tent.

I _really _hoped visits to his residence wouldn't be routine.

Pushing those thoughts aside, I gave her equipment an appraising look.

A pair sheathed daggers were harnessed around her upper body, sheathes positioned in an easy to draw location. Her shortbow and arrows were also new additions, purchased from a fletcher that the scarred smith had recommended to us. The quiver was affixed to her waist instead of her back due to the [Feathered Raven Cloak] that she wore over her armour. Commissioned from a tailor that Elhard pointed us to and made entirely of black feathers, it was enough to obscure her body entirely if she wrapped it around her. It not only provided decent bonuses to many stats, but also granted her a fairly unique ability.

Namely, the ability to conceal her presence when her cowl was up.

The acquisition of this item alone made killing that damned swarm of giant crows that assaulted the caravan worth the effort.

"Of course." I replied blandly. "If you're to do battle against us, your equipment will need to be a step up from what you've used as a bandit. Bigger guns for the bigger prey, as they say."

""Guns?"" Both Deos and Cerise looked at me in confusion.

"His point is," Yoyo replied, gazing coolly at Cerise, "that the monsters of the Waves aren't going to be your unarmed and defenseless merchant caravan."

Cerise frowned at him but said nothing. It was clear she knew what kind of standing she had among our group.

The whinnying of horses drew our attention.

Peeking past the narrow alley, we saw the tops of heads. Most of them civilians, but others were soldiers of the kingdom mobilizing.

"Whole city's on edge." Deos squinted at the passing parade.

"Hard not to be," I frowned, "considering there's less than a day left for the Wave to happen. Speaking of which." I turned to Naofumi. "I'll meet up with you tonight at the inn. We need to discuss what to do in the coming Wave."

"With me of all people?" Naofumi was frowning.

"Not like Motoyasu or Itsuki are going to listen to summons from us," I muttered sardonically, "but by all means, feel free to try."

"Right, good point." His scowl deepened. "So, tonight then?"

"Yeah. Feel free to look around the town before then, see if you can get or find anything useful."

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

Predictably, we found very little that was of use in the marketplace.

What's more, when we walked into his inn room, Naofumi was on edge.

"So what did those herbs in particular do to offend you?" Yoyo strode to and sat down in a chair by the window.

"Eh?" Naofumi looked up at the sound of the door. "Nothing in particular. Just got a bone to pick with some certain _Heroes_."

"Don't assume they were interested in talking." I managed to keep the annoyance out of my voice. "Unless they're hiding in that closet."

"Talk, _right_." Naofumi set down the pestle and mortar down perhaps harsher than necessary. "I'm pretty sure Motoyasu would've rather run me through on sight."

"You don't have to worry about that. Your defense is so ridiculously high that his spear would probably bounce." I took a seat on the floor next to him . "But that's beside the point. Let's start talking tactics."

"Right, let's review what we're aware of." Yoyo raised a finger. "For one, none of us are aware of where the Wave is going to appear, nor do we know what the mobs are going to look like or what the Wave Boss will be like. We _can _infer that it'll be close to some sort of civilization given the amount of settlements that exist outside of Melromarc's walls, to say nothing of the other countries that we know very little of."

"All I'm sure of is that the small fry show up in numbers." Deos' gaze was distant and his grip could've bent steel. "I'm talking whole legions of them dropping in a _very _short time to ruin your entire life no matter where you may be if you're in the Wave's vicinity."

"With that in mind, it would be beneficial if the Wave Boss was beaten as soon as possible." Naofumi rested his hand on his chin. "Now the issue with that is that I basically don't _have_ an ATT stat, and to take anything down, ATT is very much necessary."

"Plus there's the issue of the other two heroes," I muttered, "even if you did show up, I doubt your, or my presence would be approved of by the kingdom at large. Callous though it-"

"Um…" Raphtalia flinched slightly as everyone turned to her. "Why is everyone speaking so disapprovingly of the other heroes? And why did the other heroes treat Naofumi-sama the way they did? Is there something that happened between you guys and the other heroes?"

"...That," I sighed, "is a story for another time."

Wasn't even my story to tell, really, seeing as I was just the guy who stepped in.

"As I was saying," I picked up from where I left off, "callous though it may be to say it, it's probably best, from a practical standpoint, for you and Raphtalia to go after the smaller fish, so to speak."

"...I guess you have a point." Naofumi's gaze went to his shield. "With this damned thing, the only thing I can do is defend Raphtalia as she fights on my behalf. And though she's made leaps and bounds throughout the month, she's nowhere near strong enough to take on a Wave Boss."

"You give the potential of an unbreakable defense too little credit, Naofumi." I rubbed my eyes as I spoke, the words filled with regret. "I'd give up all of this ATT that made me strong in a heartbeat-"

_-And Hell rained down on us, a storm of fire and lead tearing away at buildings as the world shook-_

"-if I could get the ability to protect all that's around me instead."

The room went quiet. Yoyo looked at me sympathetically, knowing full well what I sacrificed for his freedom.

"...I'm getting off track again." I unfurled a map and laid it on the ground. "This is a map of this country here. I made a note of the major settlements outside of the capital here, and I want to ask that you head to the nearest one when we get teleported. As the Shield Hero, your skill sets are best oriented towards the defense of both yourself and others, making you the most suited to keeping a village's inhabitants unharmed."

"What of the _king_'s-"-he spat "king" as a snake would spit venom-"-army? As much of a sack of sh-trash as he is, I have doubts he wouldn't mobilize forces to defend his kingdom."

"Any army will take time to mobilize." Cerise's dagger was drawn, twirling idly in her hand.

"Time the settlement might not have." Deos finished the thought, eyeing the dagger warily.

Naofumi's eyes flitted to Raphtalia for a brief moment, then met mine once more. "I'll do my best, but I doubt I'll be able to save everyone."

"I won't ask that of you." My gaze was stoic. "Though that would be the best case scenario, it's also the one least likely to occur."

His stare locked on mine for another moment. "...Good."

"While you're doing that," I continued, "Our group's going to be hunting-and subsequently killing-the Wave Boss. To do that," I turned to my party, "we have to move efficiently to find it. When we're on the move, Cerise, I want you to shoot on the move, if it's possible for you."

"I've been doing that since I was ten, it'll be no issue."

"Good. Me and Deos will be at the front to carve a path as the ones with both the highest ATT and DEX stats. Yoyo, I want you to stick with Cerise. Cover for us so we don't get swarmed from the sides, and watch each others' backs as well."

Yoyo nodded without complaint.

"Once we arrive on the scene, we'll have to change up the formation," I continued, "Longer ranged combatant paired with a shorter range combatant. I'll be partnered with Yoyo."

"That sounds like a bad idea." Naofumi, ever the optimist, spoke up as he moved back to his pestle & mortar.

"Agreed." Deos' eye shifted to Cerise's dagger again. "What's your guarantee that she won't stab me in the back? I'm sure she's wondering the same."

"I'll order the two of you not to attack each other if I have to." My tone had frozen over. "I may not like making use of the slave crests but I like the thought of infighting even less. Save me the trouble and learn how to cooperate, because these Waves are a matter of life and death. They will not be so courteous as to let you resolve your tensions with your party members."

"Have you forgotten that she tried to kill you?!" Deos stood, glaring incredulously.

"I remember that she _failed_." I stood as well, glaring right back. "I remember _breathing _and _walking _all of today, and I remember how I still _stand _here, arguing this point with you. Dwelling on the past does you no good, Deos, if it blinds you from the _now_. I will say it again, the two of you will either learn to cooperate, or you'll both sit this fight out, rooted to the ground and unable to kill each other. _Do I make myself clear_?"

Deos glared for a moment more before backing down. It was clear that no matter how much he disliked Cerise for her attempt on my life, he detested the idea of being made useless even more. And the idea that I'd bench him if he failed to cooperate with her, loathe as he was to do so, was enough to make him comply.

"I don't _want_ to force you, either of you, to sit out." With significant effort, I forced my feelings back. "It'd make things far more difficult than it could've been, resulting in it taking longer for the Wave Boss to be defeated, and higher potential casualties. But I will not risk any of us dying because one or more of us couldn't coordinate and cooperate with the others at a critical moment. The kingdom suffered casualties because they had underestimated the Waves, and I _refuse _for us to suffer the same because two of my party members think that it'll be enough of a cakewalk to leave them time to squabble in the middle of it."

"You keep calling us 'party members'," Cerise drew air quotes as she spoke, "why not call us you slaves? Call it as it is?"

"You want to know why? Alright then." I took off my right gauntlet and brandished the numbers on the back of my fist in her stunned face. "Look upon them," I hissed, "and take a guess as to what caused these scars."

"Those...burn scars," she muttered, brain clearly running on autopilot, "but for scars to be burned in a specific pattern, it has to have been a shape that was heated. Wood doesn't preserve shape when burned so that…shit." Her shocked eyes met my own glare. "Those were numbers. You were branded in the same way a rancher would brand his cattle."

"Made to labour like them too." My smile was hollow. "I know how it feels to have your freedom taken, and that's precisely why I _abhor _the slave crest system. It's why I was debating whether I should off you or not on the way to the city; I knew that if I were to keep you alive, I'd have to keep you under watch from us, and I considered death the better of those two evils. It's why I will _always _address people as a person, no matter how much of an _asshole _they may be."

I put my gauntlet back on with a click. "I don't want to use the seals. If I had it my way, I'd never have to, but the reality of the situation is that no matter my desires, obligations come first, and currently that obligation is _our_ survival as we battle the Wave. So yes, if push comes to shove, I'll use it. I'll feel like an absolute piece of shit afterwards, but I'll do what I must to meet the goals I set for myself. Just as I always have." I stood as I finished my spiel, the indignation being replaced with a bitter exhaustion. "I guess this concludes our little gathering, I'll see you tomorrow, Naofumi."

Without waiting for his reply or anyone to follow, I strode out of the door.

* * *

**+Support of the Sword Hero+**

* * *

I sat by a fountain in the town plaza as I watched the timer tick away, pondering about my most recent decisions and words.

Such as why I'd introduced Cerise, who was clearly disapproved of. Subtly by my brother, and not so much by Deos.

Hell, I didn't even like her terribly. She was a bandit, after all, and has no doubt committed dozens of atrocities herself.

So why did I choose to spare _her_, out of the dozens I'd apprehended and dozens more that I'd killed?

I closed my eyes, and once more-

_-resigned to a fate that they had no control over-_

I could see the expression on her face as she was tied up. It was an expression of quiet resignation that I'd seen mirrored in my eyes as well as, to a lesser extent, Naofumi's.

The look of a person who's had their innocence stabbed in the jugular and tossed aside like trash.

The look of someone who'd been broken down and trodden on over and over again.

The look of someone who walked forward not with pride, but bitterness and silent despair.

The look that I wanted to ensure would never need to appear again.

"_Tsk. Seems like I'm getting sentimental in my old age._" I grinned sardonically at the thought. "_Next thing I know, my hair's going to start graying._"

"One."

I snapped out of my reverie and looked to my brother, standing beside Cerise and Deos, all battle ready.

"You ready for this?"

_**00:00:00:05**_

I sighed, and pushed the doubts I had out of my mind. There'd be time to worry about this later.

_**00:00:00:04**_

"Yeah, I'm ready."

_**00:00:00:03**_

I grinned at them.

_**00:00:00:02**_

_**00:00:00:01**_

"Let's secure a victory that all of us can be proud of."

"Right!"

_**00:00:00:00**_

* * *

**A/N:**

**So...Merry Christmas?**

**This took _way _too long to be written.**

**Anyways, meet Cerise, the newest addition to One's motley band due to One's bleeding heart which he didn't know he had.**

**As you can see, he's not going to let friction between two feuding members persist, he's nipping _that _problem in the bud as soon as he can.**

**Whether that'll lead to _new_ problems later will only be told through time.**

**I had a lot of mixed feelings writing this chapter, lots of scenes I wasn't sure of and character dialogue that I revised over and over again. At this point, I knew I needed a second set of eyes to look over my work.**

**So say hello to my new beta, the one and only Beater, Kirito Kun!**

**(It's her Discord handle, not telling you her name for obvious reasons.)**

**I own nothing except Deos and now Cerise.**


	6. What's happening now

**So I'm sure all of you who have followed and favourited this story are wondering where I've been.**

**Or perhaps not, but you're getting an explanation anyways.**

**I started this story when I had only seen the anime. I thought I knew what I was doing for the story and believed I had a good grasp of how things are meant to go, and planned things accordingly.**

**Then I joined the Shield Hero Discord and learned that much of what I thought I knew was actually wrong, read the LNs, and vowed to myself that I'd rewrite the story to work properly within the setting of canon.**

**Then COVID-19 hit, and much of my motivation went down the window.**

**It took me much time and effort, but I've finally finished rewriting chapter one of the story. I'll post it as a separate work and continue updating from there.**

**All of you who have favourited and followed, thank you, and I hope you'll enjoy the changes I've made.**


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